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PROMOTING HEALTHY ENVIRONMENTS WITH A FOCUS ON THE IMPACT OF ACTIONS ON ELECTROMAGNETIC FIELDS

Promoting Healthy Environments with a Focus on the Impact of Actions on

Electromagnetic Fields

Mudgal S, Sonigo P, de Toni A, Johansson L, Rualt C, Schütz J. Bio Intelligence Service; Danish Cancer Society, the

Institute of Cancer Epidemiology, 2011

This document was produced for the Directorate General for Health and Consumers as part of the EU health programme� , managed by the Executive Agency for Health and Consumers. Contract reference 2009 62 03

Authors:Shailendra Mudgal, Pierre Sonigo, Arianna de Toni, Linda Johansson, Cécile RualtBio Intelligence Service, France,Joachim Schütz, Danish Cancer Society, Institute of Cancer Epidemiology, Denmark.

Responsibility for the content of the report lies with the authors. The authors do not accept any liability for any direct or indirect damage resulting from the use of his report or its contents. The report does not represent the views of the European Commission; nor is the Commission responsible for any use that may be made of the information contained herein.

This report should be quoted:

Mudgal S, Sonigo P, de Toni A, Johansson L, Rualt C, Schütz J, Promoting Healthy En-vironments with a Focus on the Impact of Actions on Electromagnetic Fields. (20��) European Commission Directorate General for Health and Consumers. Luxembourg.

ISBN 978-92-79-20421-0

© European Communities, 20��

� Second Programme of Community Action on Health. 2008-20�3 OJ 2007 L30� p3-�3

August 2010 Promoting healthy environments: Electromagnetic fields 3

Contents 1. Introduction .................................................................................................... 5

1.1. Objective .............................................................................................................................. 5

1.2. Approach .............................................................................................................................. 5

2. Assessment of EMF exposure ........................................................................... 7

2.1. Background ........................................................................................................................... 7

2.2. Main sources of EMF ............................................................................................................ 8

2.2.1. Static fields ........................................................................................................................................ 9

2.2.2. Extremely low frequency EMF ......................................................................................................... 11

2.2.3. Intermediate frequency EMF ........................................................................................................... 13

2.2.4. Radio frequency EMF ....................................................................................................................... 15

2.3. Current levels of exposure of EU population ..................................................................... 18

2.3.1. Exposure of individuals in the EU population .................................................................................. 18

2.3.2. Additional data needs ...................................................................................................................... 23

2.3.3. Conclusions and methodological issues .......................................................................................... 24

2.4. Health effects ..................................................................................................................... 25

2.4.1. Static fields ...................................................................................................................................... 25

2.4.2. Extremely low frequency fields ....................................................................................................... 26

2.4.3. Intermediate frequency fields ......................................................................................................... 28

2.4.4. Radiofrequency fields ...................................................................................................................... 29

2.4.5. Preliminary conclusions ................................................................................................................... 30

3. Evaluation of the current EU approach ........................................................... 31

3.1. The evolution of public perception .................................................................................... 31

3.2. Current EU approach .......................................................................................................... 34

3.2.1. EU Policy and legal framework ........................................................................................................ 35

3.2.2. Scientific actions .............................................................................................................................. 41

3.2.3. Science-policy interface ................................................................................................................... 49

3.3. Initiatives in Member States .............................................................................................. 51

3.3.1. Policy actions ................................................................................................................................... 51

3.3.2. Scientific actions .............................................................................................................................. 55

3.3.3. Science-policy interface ................................................................................................................... 59

4. Possible measures to avoid unnecessary exposure.......................................... 67

4.1. Different exposure scenarios ............................................................................................. 67

4.2. Technical approches ........................................................................................................... 68

4.2.1. Approaches to reduce exposure to ELF ........................................................................................... 69

4.2.2. Approaches to reduce exposure to IF .............................................................................................. 73

4.2.3. Approaches to reduce exposure to RF ............................................................................................. 74

4.2.4. Approaches to reduce exposure to SF ............................................................................................. 76

4.3. Policy approches................................................................................................................. 76

4 Promoting healthy environments: Electromagnetic fields

August 2010

4.3.1. Policy approaches to reduce exposure to ELF ................................................................................. 77

4.3.2. Policy approaches to reduce exposure to IF ................................................................................... 80

4.3.3. Policy approaches to reduce exposure to RF .................................................................................. 82

4.3.4. Policy approaches to reduce exposure to SF ................................................................................... 85

4.4. Conclusions and recommendations ....................................................................................86


1. INTRODUCTION

1.1. OBJECTIVE

This study aims to support Action 13 relating to electromagnetic fields of the EU

Environment & Health Action Plan by evaluating the impact and the effectiveness of EU

actions undertaken since 2004, as well as by assisting in the identification of future

actions.

Specific objectives of this study include:

Analysing the actual exposure of the general public to EMF in the EU

(extremely low frequencies, intermediate frequencies, and radio frequencies

as defined by the SCENIHR), and the trends in this exposure and public concern

in the EU since 2004.

Assessing the actions taken at EU level since 2004 (regulatory actions, technical

standards, research funding, and scientific assessments)

Identifying additional measures that could be taken to reduce the exposure of

the general public to EMF in all frequency ranges, to assess the advantages and

disadvantages, and to estimate the costs of these measures at EU level.

1.2. APPROACH

This analysis is based on existing information sources and data measurements and

modelling was not performed (e.g. on EMF exposure assessment). A detailed and

comprehensive review of existing literature and legislative sources was carried out.

Scientific information is analysed and validated with external experts in the field in

order to derive reliable conclusions. This report is structured into three main sections:

Analysis of EMF public exposure in the EU (chapter 2. )

Evaluation of the current EU approach (chapter 3. )

Additional measures to reduce the exposure (chapter 4. )

The conceptual framework of this study is presented in Figure 1.1.


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Ch

apte

r2

Sources

Ch

apte

r3

Current EU approach

SciencePolicyScience-policy interfacePublic concern

Ch

apte

r4

Additional measures to reduce EMF exposure and their feasibility

Exposure

Health Effects

Uncertainty

Figure 1-1: Conceptual framework for the study


2. ASSESSMENT OF EMF EXPOSURE

2.1. BACKGROUND

Electromagnetic fields (EMF) have existed on Earth since always and are not necessarily

man-made. An example of EMF existing in nature is electric field produced by the local

build-up of electric charges in the atmosphere associated with thunderstorms. During

the twentieth century, man-made sources of EMF have steadily increased due to

electricity demand, wireless technologies, telecommunications, broadcasting, and

medical equipment such as soft tissue healing appliances, magnetic resonance imaging

(MRI), etc.

Due to an extensive development of mobile telecommunications and a significant

increase in the number of electronic appliances since the 1990s, the number and type

of EMF sources have increased, resulting in increased possibilities of our daily exposure

to EMF. There have been scientific and political debates regarding the potential

adverse health effects of EMF, notably at long-term and high levels of exposure.

However, the technologies responsible for EMF also provide social and economic

benefits as they improve the quality of life. Without electricity, our society would come

to a standstill, and both broadcasting and telecommunications have become an

inherent and accepted fact of the modern life.

The issues underlying EMF relate to a diversity of actors. It has thus become a hot topic

not only in the political sphere but also in the domains of public health, health-related

scientific research, and related industries (mobile phone companies, internet service

providers, wireless communication companies, etc.). Numerous studies, including a

series of large-scale epidemiological surveys, have been carried out in different

countries on the possible health effects of EMF on humans, animals, plants, and cell or

tissue cultures. Nonetheless, although some health effects have been observed in

some studies on EMF, no concluding evidence has been established and after more

than two decades of scientific research, no scientific consensus has been achieved

concerning the adverse health effects from EMF exposure (namely long-term

exposure). There are still significant knowledge gaps, namely in multi-exposure and

regarding the effects of long-term exposure.

Conflicting outcomes from research on the potential health effects of EMF have fuelled

the on-going debate on the extent by which the health effects could possibly be caused

by exposure to EMF. While a number of recent studies support either sides of the

debate, many frequently cited reports, such as those conducted by the World Health


August 2010

Organization (WHO)1 fail to provide conclusive scientific evidence to link EMF exposure

with negative health consequences.

2.2. MAIN SOURCES OF EMF

Electric fields are created by charged particulates and magnetic fields are created by

magnets or charged particulates in movement. EMF are characterised by their

frequency, i.e. number of variations per second, measured in hertz (Hz) and

wavelength (1/frequency), a distance measured in metres. The strength of electric

fields is measured in volts per metre (V/m). Magnetic fields are measured in tesla (T).

In the wave model of electromagnetic radiation, electric and magnetic fields oscillate

together and perpendicular to each other (Figure 2-1). In the corpuscular model,

electromagnetic radiation is described as a flow of photons. Such flow is measured by

its energetic density in Watt per square metre (W/m2).

Figure 2-1: Electromagnetic waves2

EMF can be derived from a variety of natural and man-made sources. Natural sources

of EMF are the Earth’s magnetic field, the solar and lunar cycles, and thunderstorms

which produce electric discharges in the atmosphere. Light itself is an electromagnetic

radiation that can be visually detected. Anthropogenic sources of EMF are mainly

electrical, telecommunication, and medical devices. The electromagnetic fields of

anthropogenic origin are ubiquitous and in general stronger than those of natural

origin3.

EMF have a very wide range of frequencies (Figure 2-2), from non-ionising extremely

low frequency (wavelengths of some hundreds of metres), to optical range (i.e. light,

with a wavelength between 380 and 780 10-9 m) to ionising very high-frequency

(wavelengths around 10-18 m).

1 World Health Organization. Electromagnetic fields (EMF) – Summary of health effects:

www.who.int/peh-emf/about/WhatisEMF/en/index1.html [Accessed online 12/03/2010] 2 Electric and magnetic fields: www.astronomynotes.com/light/s2.htm [Accessed online 25/02/2010]

3 Kato M. Electromagnetics in biology. Springer 2006.


Figure 2-2 : The electromagnetic spectrum5

In this report, only static fields (0 Hz), electromagnetic fields (EMF) with extremely low

frequencies (ELF, between 0 and 300 Hz), intermediate frequencies (IF, between

300 Hz and 100 kHz), and radio frequencies (RF, between 100 kHz and 300 GHz) are

considered. They all belong to non-ionising radiation. Some confusion may exist with

ionising radiations such as X-rays and gamma rays that possess much higher

frequencies and documented health effects.

2.2.1. STATIC FIELDS

Even if only few anthropogenic sources of static fields exist (Table 2-1), there is a rapid

development of new technologies which produce static fields. One of the main

applications producing static fields4 are medical devices, e.g. magnetic resonance

imaging (MRI) scanners (Figure 2-3) used for identifying different types of tissues in the

human body (Box 2-1). Many scientific techniques also use the nuclear magnetic

resonance (NMR) for studying molecular physics, crystals, and non-crystalline materials

through NMR spectroscopy. Static fields are also produced in some industrial processes

used in the aluminium and chlor-alkali industries, in welding processes, and in certain

railway and underground transport systems5. The use of direct current in rail systems

can also generate this type of EMF inside the train.

4 Nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) is a property that magnetic nuclei have in a magnetic field and

applied electromagnetic (EM) pulse or pulses, which cause the nuclei to absorb energy from the EM pulse and radiate this energy back out. NMR is also routinely used in advanced medical imaging techniques, such as in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). 5 European Commission, DG Health and Consumers protection website:

www.ec.europa.eu/health/opinions2/en/electromagnetic-fields/index.htm#1 [Accessed online 25/02/2010]

Non-ionising radiation


August 2010

Table 2-1: Anthropogenic sources of static fields

Source Frequency Occupational exposure

Residential exposure

Ambient exposure

Possibility of exposure

MRI 0 Hz Yes No No

Occasionally for treating patients but possibility of exposure of radiology personnel during the device use

Industrial electrolysis

0 Hz Yes No No Possibility of exposure of workers in chlor-alkali industries

Welding devices

0 Hz Yes No No Possibility of exposure of the welders during welding

Railway and under-ground train systems

0 Hz Yes No Yes Possibility of exposure during transportation/ travels

Figure 2-3: MRI scanner


Box 2-1 – Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) 6

MRI is a medical diagnostic tool used for providing three-dimensional images of body

structures, e.g. brain. MRI uses the magnetic characteristics of the body’s hydrogen

atoms and their interaction with both external magnetic fields and radiofrequencies

to produce highly detailed images of the human body. The nucleus of the hydrogen

atom contains a single proton. Nuclei containing an odd number of protons and/or

neutrons have a characteristic motion in EMF. MRI creates a steady magnetic field and

hydrogen nuclei align themselves in the direction of the magnetic field. A RF field is

then applied to the patient, changing the previous disposition of hydrogen atoms.

When the RF pulse stops, the nuclei return to equilibrium, parallel to the first

magnetic field. During this return to equilibrium, called relaxation, the nuclei lose

energy by emitting their own measurable RF signal, called the response signal. To

produce a 3D image, this signal is encoded by adding a new gradient magnetic field of

low frequency. The colour intensity of a tissue on the image depends on the proton

density, the higher the proton density, the stronger is the response signal. In MRI,

contrasts also depend on the relaxation time for nuclei to return to equilibrium and

the time to send the response signal. When MR images are acquired, the RF pulse is

repeated at a predetermined rate and the response signals can be measured at

various times within the interval. This interval and the time between the application of

the RF pulse and the response signal can be adjusted to contrast different tissue

types. Therefore, MRI devices produce three types of fields: a static EMF, a low

frequency EMF and a radiofrequency EMF.

2.2.2. EXTREMELY LOW FREQUENCY EMF

Electromagnetic fields of extremely low frequency (ELF), i.e. between 0 and 300 Hz,

mainly originate from anthropogenic sources such as electrical appliances and power

transmission and distribution lines (Figure 2-4). Electricity is transmitted from power

stations to cities, factories, and homes through overhead and underground cables.

Such cable networks containing electric current generates ELF fields.

In residential areas, the major sources of ELF fields are electrical equipment (e.g. TV,

computers) and domestic electric installations. In industrial facilities, electric power

installations, welding, induction heaters, and electrified transport systems are

important sources of ELF exposure. ELF fields are also often used in industry for the

induction heating of metals and semiconductors.

ELF fields can be also used in therapeutic and diagnostic applications, such as bone

growth stimulation after a fracture or in wound healing, pain treatment, or cancer

detection5.

6 Simon Fraser University (SFU) computing science. Basic Principles of MRI, 1995:

www.cs.sfu.ca/~stella/papers/blairthesis/main/node11.html [Accessed online 15/03/2010]


August 2010

Figure 2-4 : Power transmission and distribution lines7

Electromagnetic fields produced by transmission lines are measured by their ground-

level field strength, which varies widely depending on the current flowing through the

conductors, which in turn depends on the demand for electric power, on the

configuration of the transmission line, and on the distance of the measurement point

from the line. Typically, a transmission line’s contribution to the ambient EMF

disappears at distances greater than 100 metres from the line2.

Table 2-2 summarises various types of ELF fields and the potential human exposure.

Table 2-2: Sources of extremely low frequency fields



Ambient exposure


Power transmission and distribution lines

50 Hz Depends on the location

Depends on the location

Yes

Possibility of exposure of people living or working near a line (within 100m)

Household appliances: electric iron, toaster, electric oven, vacuum cleaner, electric shaver, etc.

50 Hz No Yes No

Exposure levels depending on the frequency of use of domestic electrical devices

Trains, trams and subway systems

16 2/3 Hz; 25 Hz or 50 Hz for high-speed lines

Yes No Yes

Possibility of exposure during travel/ transportation. People living in buildings located near such networks are more exposed.

7 Texas Attorney Blog: www.texasattorneyblog.com/utility_and_transmission_line/ [Accessed online

10/03/2010]




Ambient exposure


Welding machines

50 Hz Yes No No

Possibility of exposure of the workers during welding

Induction heaters

50-300 Hz Yes Yes No

Exposure levels depending on the frequency of use of induction heaters

Induction furnaces

50-300 Hz Yes No No

Possibility of exposure for those working next to furnaces

Medical: MRI, bone growth stimulation, wound healing, pain treatment, cancer detection

MRI: 100-1000 Hz Others medical applications: 50-100 Hz

Yes No No

Occasionally for treated patients. Possible exposure of medical personnel during treatments.

Natural sources, e.g. storms

From several Hz to GHz

No No Yes Possibility of exposure during storms

Electric engines in cars

50-60 Hz Yes No Yes Possibility of exposure while driving

Generators used in power plants

50 Hz Yes No No Possibility of exposure of workers in power plants

2.2.3. INTERMEDIATE FREQUENCY EMF

Intermediate frequencies of EMF, ranging between 300 Hz and 100 kHz, are produced

by anti-theft devices (e.g. in shop exit doors), induction hobs and hotplates, electric

engines, and card readers. Other sources include computer and television screens

containing cathode ray tubes, compact fluorescent lamps, radio transmitters, and high

voltage feeders8 (Table 2-3).

This category of EMF can also be generated by industrial processes such as welding,

medical applications such as electrosurgery (Figure 2-5) (which uses electric current to

cut or remove tissues), and MRI9 .

8 Electromagnetic field, health and environment - Proceedings of EHE’07. Studies in Applied

Electromagnetics and Mechanics, 2008. 9 Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR). Health Effects of

Exposure to EMF. 2009


August 2010

Figure 2-5 : Electrosurgery device10

Table 2-3: Sources of intermediate frequency fields

Source Frequency Occupational

exposure Residential exposure

Ambient exposure


Anti theft devices

tens of Hz to few GHz

Yes No No

In shops, possibility of exposure of the sales personnel during their whole working time

Induction hobs and hotplates

20 to 50 kHz No Yes No

Possibility of exposure during the working of these devices

Card readers (safety, keys, badge, etc.)

100 kHz Yes No No

Possibility of exposure of people passing near these devices /workers

Welding devices

A few hundred kHz

Yes No No

Possibility of exposure of the workers during welding

Induction heaters

Tens of Hz to tens of kHz

Yes Yes No

Exposure levels depending on the frequency of use of induction heaters

Electro-surgery

Hundreds of kHz

Yes No No

Occasionally for treated patients. Possible exposure of medical personnel during treatments.

10

North West dental equipment - electrosurgery: www.dental-chairs.co.uk/electrosurgery.html [Accessed online 10/03/2010]




Ambient exposure


Computer screens (CRT)

100 Hz Yes Yes No

Exposure levels dependent on the frequency of use of computers

Metal detectors

Some tens of kHz to some MHz

No No No

Possibility of exposure in airports, etc. of personnel working near these devices and people subjected to detection

Light bulbs 30-60 kHz Yes Yes No

High exposure in all sites (home, workplace, street, etc.) lighted with light bulbs

Medium –wave Radio transmitters

30-300 kHz Depending of the location

Depending of the location

Depending of the location

Possibility of exposure if the house or the workplace is located within 20 km of the tower

2.2.4. RADIO FREQUENCY EMF

Sources which generate radio frequency (RF) (from 100 kHz to 300 GHz) are

widespread in our society. RF fields are produced by mobile phones and their antennas

and base stations (Figure 2-6). The nature of transmitted RF fields depends on several

factors, including the cell size of the base station and the type of mobile phone.


August 2010

Figure 2-6 : Mobile phone base stations11

Key sources of RF fields (Table 2-4) include cordless phones, local wireless networks

and radio or television transmission towers3. Other examples of sources of general

exposure to RF fields are medical scanners, microwave ovens, civil and military radar

systems, private mobile radio systems, or new technologies such as digital audio

broadcasting systems, and Wi-Fi.

Some of the more recent anti-theft systems and several industrial appliances, like

broadcasting stations or heating appliances, also operate in the RF range.

In addition, electromagnetic fields in the RF range are used in various therapeutic

applications, like soft tissue healing appliances for analgesic applications (heating body

tissue can ease pain), hyperthermia for burning and killing cancer cells, and

diathermy12. Another common application of RF fields in medicine is magnetic

resonance imaging or MRI (Box 2-1).

Table 2-4: Sources of radio frequency fields



Ambient exposure


Mobile phones

900 MHz – 2 GHz

Yes Yes Yes

Levels of exposure dependent on the frequency of use – also related to the frequency of use of the surrounding people

Cordless phones

1880 MHz - 1900 MHz

Yes Yes No

Possibility of exposure at a frequency dependent on the phone location

11

West Seattle blog: www.westseattleblog.com/category/utilities/page/4 [Accessed online 10/03/2010] 12

Physical therapy using high-frequency electric current, ultrasound, or microwaves to deliver heat to muscles and ligaments. Source: www.aarp.org/health/conditions/articles/harvard__arthritis-keeping-your-joints-healthy_9.html [Accessed online 20/02/2010]




Ambient exposure


Mobile phone base stations

900 MHz - 2 GHz

Yes Yes Yes

Frequency of exposure variable depending on location

Medical applications: MRI, healing appliances, burning cells, medical scanners

MRI: 10-100 MHz Scanner: 2.5 - 10 MHz

Yes No No

Occasionally for treated patients. Possible exposure of medical personnel during treatments

Heating Until some tens of MHz

Yes Yes No Possible exposure when heating is on

Radar systems

3 - 30 GHz Yes Yes Yes Possible exposure when the radar is on

Private mobile radio systems

Some hundreds MHz

No Yes No

Exposure levels dependent on the frequency of use

TV antennas

800 MHz Depends on the location

Yes Yes

Possibility of exposure when home/workplace are located close to an antenna

Radio stations

Some hundreds MHz



Yes

Possibility of exposure when home/workplace are located close to a radio station

Microwave ovens

2.45 GHz No Yes No

Exposure dependent on the frequency of use

Anti-theft devices

Hundreds of Hz to few MHz

Yes Yes No

Possible exposure if the device is activated when someone is in the protected building

Wireless computer networks

2 - 5 GHz Yes Yes No

Potential continuous exposure if these systems are installed in the residential and working environment


August 2010

2.3. CURRENT LEVELS OF EXPOSURE OF EU POPULATION

2.3.1. EXPOSURE OF INDIVIDUALS IN THE EU POPULATION

Numerous surveys have been conducted by regulatory authorities in different Member

States, in compliance with EMF protection guidelines such as Council Recommendation

1999/519/EC. The focus of such surveys is on particular EMF sources, often under

worst case scenarios. All surveys show that non-compliance with the protection

guidelines suggested by the International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation

Protection (ICNIRP) is generally not an issue; the situation however is different for

regions that have adopted lower protection levels as a precautionary measure, such as

Switzerland, where compliance with guidelines sometimes has an impact on the

location of a mobile phone base station. The data collected from these surveys do not

provide good insight into the exposure levels of individuals, who are often exposed to

multiple sources at the same time and who move from one place to another.

Therefore, data on the EMF exposure of individuals can only be obtained by explicit

measurements, using for example dosimetric devices. Alternatively, the exposure only

in residential areas can be measured when it can be assumed that it is the dominating

exposure. A number of surveys have also been carried out on individuals, but they do

not follow a standard protocol, hence the results are difficult to compare.

Most measurement studies focus on either the ELF or RF range. The electric field

component is rarely investigated for the ELF studies. In contrast, RF studies exclusively

measure the electrical component and report power density in Watt/m2 rather than

field strength in Volt/m. Measurement devices measure limited and device-dependent

frequency ranges. Added to this, exposures below the detection limits of the

measurement devices are quite common (in the RF range it is common to have less

than 10% of measurements above the detection limit) and the way non-detects are

taken into account for measuring total exposure differs from one study to another,

further hampering a direct comparison of results. In a recent measurement study in

Austria13 both ELF and RF median exposure in residential area were measured for 226

individuals. The magnetic and the electrical field components of the night-time ELF

exposure close to the bed were 0.02 µT (magnetic) and 26.2 V/m (electric), and 25% of

the measured values were above 0.07 µT and 50.4 V/m respectively. For same

locations, total RF exposure was measured with a median value of 40.34 µW/m2 and

25% of measured values exceeding 141.87 µW/m2.

An overview of common sources of the exposure of individuals to EMF is given in the

2009 report of the SCENIHR. The highest exposures in the ELF range occur during the

use of electrical appliances that are held close to the body (several hundreds of µT

related to the use of electric razors or hair dryers) or in occupational settings (compare

13

Tomitsch J, Dechant E, Frank W. Survey of electromagnetic field exposure in bedrooms of residences in lower Austria. Bioelectromagnetics. 2009 Sep 24;31(3):200-208


with job-exposure-matrix14). While appliance-related exposure is usually intermittent

and very short-term, thus hardly contributing to cumulative exposure over the day, in

some workplaces exposure is higher than usual levels over the whole working time,

and workers in those occupations experience the highest levels of exposure. That is

why many studies investigating risks related to EMF exposure target occupational

exposure15. Long-term environmental exposures occur in people living close to

installations of power transmission and distribution lines, mainly overhead high-

voltage power lines16. While normal ‘background’ ELF magnetic field levels averaged

over 24 hours are between 0.01 and 0.05 µT in residential areas, often up to 0.1 µT in

apartment buildings due to higher numbers of power consumers, several µT

exceptionally occur in residences situated very close to power lines.

Some data on individual levels of exposure are available from epidemiological studies.

Large-scale studies in the UK and in Germany have shown that average magnetic fields

(median) above 0.2 µT seldom occur (< 2% of houses). In the residences with magnetic

fields above 0.2 µT, one-third of these fields were due to close vicinity to high-voltage

power lines (110-420 kV), one-third to low voltage (380 V) installations, and the

remaining one-third to indoor wiring17,18. Indoor-transformers in houses have also been

identified as possible elevated field sources19,20. While it is likely that elevated magnetic

field levels are measured in residences close to power lines, the actual magnetic field

level depends on the power load of the lines, which is variable by individual power line

and time, and therefore the distance to a power line is not a perfect indicator of

magnetic field exposure21.

Several European railway systems use alternating current (often 16 2/3 Hz) and

therefore contribute to exposure, mainly to train drivers22, intermittently to travellers

14

Bowman JD, Touchstone JA, Yost MG. A population-based job exposure matrix for power-frequency magnetic fields. J Occup Environ Hyg. 2007 Sep;4(9):715-28 15

Kheifets L, Bowman JD, Checkoway H, Feychting M, Harrington JM, Kavet R, Marsh G, Mezei G, Renew DC, van Wijngaarden E. Future needs of occupational epidemiology of extremely low frequency electric and magnetic fields: review and recommendations. Occup Environ Med. 2009 Feb;66(2):72-80 16

Brix J, Wettemann H, Scheel O, Feiner F, Matthes R. Measurement of the individual exposure to 50 and 16 2/3 Hz magnetic fields within the Bavarian population. Bioelectromagnetics. 2001 Jul;22(5):323-32 17

Schüz J, Grigat JP, Störmer B, Rippin G, Brinkmann K, Michaelis J. Extremely low frequency magnetic fields in residences in Germany. Distribution of measurements, comparison of two methods for assessing exposure, and predictors for the occurrence of magnetic fields above background level. Radiat Environ Biophys. 2000 Dec;39(4):233-40 18

Maslanyj MP, Mee TJ, Renew DC, Simpson J, Ansell P, Allen SG, Roman E. Investigation of the sources of residential power frequency magnetic field exposure in the UK Childhood Cancer Study. J Radiol Prot. 2007 Mar;27(1):41-58 19

Thuróczy G, Jánossy G, Nagy N, Bakos J, Szabó J, Mezei G. Exposure to 50 Hz magnetic field in apartment buildings with built-in transformer stations in Hungary. Radiat Prot Dosimetry. 2008;131(4):469-73 20

Ilonen K, Markkanen A, Mezei G, Juutilainen J. Indoor transformer stations as predictors of residential ELF magnetic field exposure. Bioelectromagnetics. 2008 Apr;29(3):213-8 21

Maslanyj M, Simpson J, Roman E, Schüz J. Power frequency magnetic fields and risk of childhood leukaemia: misclassification of exposure from the use of the 'distance from power line' exposure surrogate. Bioelectromagnetics. 2009 Apr;30(3):183-8 22

Röösli M, Lörtscher M, Egger M, Pfluger D, Schreier N, Lörtscher E, Locher P, Spoerri A, Minder C. Mortality from neurodegenerative disease and exposure to extremely low-frequency magnetic fields: 31 years of observations on Swiss railway employees. Neuroepidemiology. 2007;28(4):197-206


August 2010

and to people living in residences close to railroads23. At intermediate frequencies,

security or anti-theft devices, e.g. at shop exits, are common exposure sources,

occasionally in nature for customers but significantly if shop assistant’s work places are

close to the installations. Although reference levels for exposure of the general public

might be exceeded in the immediate vicinity, workplaces are usually located some

meters away and typical exposures are well below protection limits24; however, large-

scale systematic measurement surveys are missing and there is little monitoring of

compliance with protection guidelines once the devices are installed.

Most other EMF exposures are occupational. Visual display units containing cathode

ray tubes are still common sources of exposure and emit in both the ELF and the IF

range, in the order of 0.001 to 0.05 µT. Radio transmitters operated in the long-wave

range (30 kHz to 300 kHz) can cause exposure in the IF range with levels above the

ICNIRP limits, and therefore safety measures are implemented for both the general

public and workers.

In the RF range, the use of mobile phones is associated with exposure to the head

concentrated in small zones, especially temporal lobes of the brain25. High exposures,

i.e. field levels exceeding the protection limits for the general public, are experienced

in occupational settings, e.g. among RF welders, RF heat sealers and broadcast tower

maintenance personnel; however, the number of exposed persons is small as only few

people are working in such conditions26.

Other sources are broadcast towers for TV and radio, and mobile phone base stations.

In the past, amplitude-modulated radio broadcasting was a major source of exposure,

due to very powerful antennas operating to serve relatively large areas, so exposures

above 1 V/m were measured several km away from the towers. Exposures from TV and

frequency-modulated radio were lower and the change to the digital networks leads to

further decrease in exposure levels27. Fields above 1 V/m were also measured in the

vicinity of mobile phone base stations, in residences in the main beam of the antenna

with free view to the base station28.

Another major source of exposure is cordless phones. While the emission from

handsets is much lower than that from mobile phones, the duration of use can be

23

Schüz J, Grigat JP, Brinkmann K, Michaelis J. Childhood acute leukaemia and residential 16.7 Hz magnetic fields in Germany. Br J Cancer. 2001 Mar 2;84(5):697-9 24

Bernhardt JH, McKinlay AF, Matthes R (editors). Possible health risks to the general public from the use of security and similar devices. Report of the Concerted Action QLK4-1999-01214 (European Commission), ICNIRP 12/2002 25

Cardis E, Deltour I, Mann S, Moissonnier M, Taki M, Varsier N, Wake K, Wiart J. Distribution of RF energy emitted by mobile phones in anatomical structures of the brain. Phys Med Biol. 2008 Jun 7;53(11):2771-83 26

Breckenkamp J, Berg-Beckhoff G, Münster E, Schüz J, Schlehofer B, Wahrendorf J, Blettner M. Feasibility of a cohort study on health risks caused by occupational exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields. Environ Health. 2009 May 29;8:23 27

Schubert M, Bornkessel C, Wuschek M, Schmidt P. Exposure of the general public to digital broadcast transmitters compared to analogue ones. Radiat Prot Dosimetry. 2007;124(1):53-7 28

Schüz J, Mann S. A discussion of potential exposure metrics for use in epidemiological studies on human exposure to radiowaves from mobile phone base stations. J Expo Anal Environ Epidemiol. 2000 Nov-Dec;10(6 Pt 1):600-5


substantially longer, leading to a higher cumulative exposure. Although the RF fields

emitted by cordless phone base stations are low and decrease rapidly29, they become

negligible beyond 50 cm. Individuals who keep the base station in the bedroom might

experience higher exposure than from outdoor mobile phone base stations, as their

fields are shielded by walls.

WHO summarised measurement studies conducted until 2007 in the ELF range30.

Magnetic fields have been repeatedly assessed in European studies with measurement

periods ranging from 1 to 7 days, either in the bedroom/domestic setting or with

personal dosimeters. In all studies, the majority of studied persons were exposed to

magnetic field levels below 0.1 µT (73.6- 89.9 %), but few (0.5-4.5%) had exposure

levels above 0.3 µT (based on arithmetic means31). Geometric means32 were only

available for a small number of studies, but more than 90% had < 0.1 µT and 0.4-1.2 %

had > 0.4 µT. The electric field component was more difficult to assess as it is more

susceptible to shielding and perturbation by conduction bodies.

The average European RF exposure level is more difficult to assess, as exposure levels

have been reported in different ways in different countries and a large proportion of

measurements in most studies were below the detection limits of the existing

measurement equipment. Furthermore, many studies were conducted in suspected

high exposure environments such as urban areas and near antennas or other sources

of a priori interest for the given study, and only a limited number of countries

conducted measurements of representative exposure levels of individuals. The existing

measurements were conducted for various reasons and no uniform or comparable

measurement protocol was applied. Since the focus of the conducted studies was often

to compare existing health risks and not to describe exposure as such, the data that

were reported were not always sufficient to assess the average or median exposure

levels. Given these limitations, some indications of the exposure levels are provided

from the studies that have used the various personal measurement devices that have

become available in recent years33.

In the Swiss QUALIFEX study 166 subjects carried meters for 7 days around Basel

during 2007-200834. The median exposure was 0.09 mW/m2 (ranging from 0.014-

29

RF fields decrease with square of the distance in theory, but that rarely applies, as an apartment is usually not free space but full of all kind of items that could shield, reflect etc. 30

www.who.int/peh-emf/publications/elf_ehc/en/index.html [Accessed online 09/03/10] 31

The arithmetic mean of a set of values, commonly called the mean or the average, is the sum of all the values divided by the number of items in the list. The arithmetic mean is not a robust statistic because it is influenced by outliers. Thus it does not match with the notion of “middle” of the distribution of the values. 32

The geometric mean indicates the central tendency of a set of numbers. In the geometric mean, the numbers are multiplied and then the nth root (where n is the count of numbers in the set) is applied to the result. The geometric mean takes into account the proportion of the values in the distribution. 33

Radon K, Spegel H, Meyer N, Klein J, Brix J, Wiedenhofer A, Eder H, Praml G, Schulze A, Ehrenstein V, von Kries R, Nowak D. Personal dosimetry of exposure to mobile telephone base stations? An epidemiologic feasibility study comparing the Maschek dosimeter prototype and the Antennessa SP-090 system. Bioelectromagnetics. 2006 Jan;27(1):77-81 34

Frei P, Mohler E, Neubauer G, Theis G, Bürgi A, Fröhlich J, Braun-Fahrländer C, Bolte J, Egger M, Röösli M. Temporal and spatial variability of personal exposure to radio frequency electromagnetic fields. Environ Res. 2009 Aug;109(6):779-85


August 2010

0.881 mW/m2) and the median night-time exposure was about one third of the

daytime exposure (0.028 mW/m2), with the main contributors being mobile phones,

mobile phone base stations, and DECT cordless phones. Living close to mobile phone

base stations, broadcast transmitters, or owning a mobile phone, cordless phones, or

WLAN equipment, all increase mean exposure. A French study with 24-hour personal

measurements of a random population sample of 377 subjects reported a total mean

field of 0.201 V/m35,36. As in the Swiss study DECT, UMTS and WLAN frequencies were

major contributors but also FM radio was high. Exposure in more rural locations was

lower than in urban centres (0.156 V/m vs. 0.231 V/m) but no difference between day

and night was seen for total exposure. In both the Swiss and French studies more than

half of the total RF field measurements were below the detection level of the

measurement devices. In a Bavarian study of children (n=1477) and adolescents

(n=1508) who carried dosimeters for 24 hours, median exposure was reported as

0.17% of the ICNIRP protection guidelines (range 0.13-0.92 %), with the exposure being

higher in the more urban areas37.

Several further studies using stationary measurements have been carried out. A large

German cross-sectional study included 1326 participants38. In 65.8% of the households

a mean total field value below the detection limit of the dosimeters of 0.05 V/m was

measured for the mobile phone base station frequencies. The 90% percentile was 0.1

V/m (0.027 mW/m2) and this was lower in the rural area than in the suburban and

urban areas. The maximum value was 1.141 V/m (3.452 mW/m2).

More recently a study on RF performed measurements in homes, offices, public

transports, and outdoor in five European countries (Belgium, Switzerland, Slovenia,

Hungary, and the Netherlands)39. The aim was to compare mean exposure levels and

contributions of different sources of RF in different environments. This study showed

that the exposure levels measured are in the same order of magnitude in all countries.

The highest RF exposure occurs in transportation vehicles (cars, buses, trains), mainly

due to radiation from mobile phone handsets, followed by outdoor urban exposure,

offices, and urban homes. The Netherlands are the exception because the highest

exposure levels were measured in offices. However, all the exposure levels were below

the international exposure limits. The study concludes that mobile telecommunication

can be considered as the main contribution to RF exposure in all countries studied.

35

Viel JF, Cardis E, Moissonnier M, de Seze R, Hours M. Radiofrequency exposure in the French general population: band, time, location and activity variability. Environ Int. 2009b Nov;35(8):1150-4 36

Viel JF, Clerc S, Barrera C, Rymzhanova R, Moissonnier M, Hours M, Cardis E. Residential exposure to radiofrequency fields from mobile phone base stations, and broadcast transmitters: a population-based survey with personal meter. Occup Environ Med. 2009a Aug;66(8):550-6 37

Thomas S, Kühnlein A, Heinrich S, Praml G, von Kries R, Radon K. Exposure to mobile telecommunication networks assessed using personal dosimetry and well-being in children and adolescents: the German MobilEe-study. Environ Health. 2008 Nov 4;7:54 38

Breckenkamp J, Berg-Beckhoff G, Münster E, Schüz J, Schlehofer B, Wahrendorf J, Blettner M. Feasibility of a cohort study on health risks caused by occupational exposure to radiofrequency electromagnetic fields. Environ Health. 2009 May 29;8:23 39

Joseph W., Frei P., Röosli M., et al. Comparison of personal radiofrequency electromagnetic field exposure in different urban areas across Europe. Environ Res. 2010 July 16


2.3.2. ADDITIONAL DATA NEEDS

There is an apparent lack of data on individuals’ exposure to EMF across all EU Member

States. The lack of direct personal measurement surveys in the ELF range could be

compensated by good knowledge about emissions of the major EMF sources, together

with data on the numbers of installations and the possibility to calculate magnetic

fields based on the characteristics of these installations. Additionally, numerous

epidemiological studies have been conducted, providing some insight into prevalence

of exposure and the composition of which field sources contribute to the total

exposure. However, most of those studies come from Northern and Western Europe

and, with the exception of Hungary, little information is available for Eastern European

countries. Little is known about the IF EMF; however, it appears that exposure of the

general public is occasional as most exposures are occupation-related. Nevertheless, in

some instances, compliance with protection guidelines appears to be a problem for

some of the anti-theft devices, especially given that pregnant women work in shops

equipped with such devices. In the RF range, the focus of measurement surveys is on

emission of particular sources and generally little is known about individual exposure.

Again, epidemiological studies provide some preliminary insight, but given the diversity

of their aims (for example, determination of the incidence of various cancers, study of

sleep disturbance, etc.), the measurement results of those studies are difficult to

compare. Before large-scale measurement campaigns are set up, there is a need for

standardisation, both on the methodology of conducting the field studies and in the

reporting of results. The EC-funded EFRHAN project40 includes a work package dealing

with comparability and availability of measurement data.

While all RF measurement surveys of sources and epidemiological studies so far

suggest that the everyday exposure levels of the general public are well below the

protection guidelines, it is difficult to predict whether groups in the population with

elevated exposure exist and, if so, to what extent they are exposed above the normal

’background‘ level. Technologies are also changing rapidly and the impact of this on

total exposure of an individual remains largely unclear. It is assumed that the change

from analogue to digital technology in radio and TV broadcasting is associated with a

decrease in exposure levels. The change from GSM technology for mobile

telecommunication to UMTS technology is also associated with a lower exposure to RF

during mobile phone use, as UMTS usually operates with lower emissions. At the same

time, new technologies emerge or the use of these technologies by the population

becomes more widespread. In addition, the lower the number of transmission stations

to serve a certain territory size or the larger the size of the served territory, the higher

the strength of emitted signals.

40

EFHRAN – European health risk assessment network on EMF exposure website: efhran.polimi.it/index.html


August 2010

Three questions in the RF range are of particular interest:

1) What are average total RF exposure levels in the general population in

different locations?

2) Is the composition of total RF exposure level dependent on the location, i.e.

which field sources contribute most to the overall exposure?

3) Are exposure levels lower in areas with defined precautionary measures such

as lower protection limits than those defined by ICNIRP, like in Brussels, Italy or

Switzerland?

A prerequisite for addressing these questions are joint actions for both the design and

conduct of measurement campaigns.

2.3.3. CONCLUSIONS AND METHODOLOGICAL ISSUES

The main methodological issues are to further improve personal dosimeters to

measure the exposure levels of individuals to RF fields and to develop a standard for a

measurement protocol to enable the comparison of measurement surveys across

countries. With regard to the devices, there is a need to fulfil the following

requirements: i) covering the whole relevant frequency spectrum and providing both

total and frequency range measures; ii) minimising measurement artefacts due to

device location; iii) obtaining a high acceptance of study participants to carry the

device with them for longer time periods, thus it has to be relatively small, light and

well designed; iv) long term recording, i.e. enough storage capacity for measured

values; v) recording of start and stop of the measurement, GPS logger and interface to

personal computers; vi) easy to calibrate; vii) obtaining the highest possible validity and

reliability of measurements. With regard to dissemination, there is a high need for

standardisation of reported values, as currently the results from surveys are hardly

comparable. There are two types of protocols, one for population measurement

surveys (the sample has to be representative of the target population and the day of

the measurement has to be representative of the participants’ usual activity patterns)

and one for microenvironment measurement surveys (the target is microenvironments

under normal operating conditions and population exposure will be estimated based

on time spent in the respective microenvironment). A suggestion for such protocols

was developed by Röösli et al.41

41

Röösli M, Frei P, Bolte J, Neubauer G, Cardis E, Feychting M, Gajsek P, Heinrich S, Joseph W, Mann S, Martens L, Mohler E, Parslow R, Poulsen AH, Radon K, Schüz J, Thuroczy G, Viel JF, Vrijheid M. Proposal of a study protocol for the conduct of a personal radiofrequency electromagnetic field measurement campaign. Under review


2.4. HEALTH EFFECTS

The health effects of EMF on the human body could not only depend on the field

strength and frequency of EMF but also on the level of exposure, as well as individual

characteristics such as body size, angle towards the field, or age42. Children, for

instance, are potentially more vulnerable to RF fields because of the potentially greater

sensitiveness of their nervous systems to the heating induced by this category of fields.

This is due to the fact that their brain tissue is more conductive than that of adults and

to their different physiology and cell growth dynamics. Moreover, it should be

considered that they may have a longer exposure during their lifetime compared to

adult individuals43.

Low and high frequency electromagnetic waves affect the human body in different

ways.

2.4.1. STATIC FIELDS

After an exposure to static EMF, short term effects have been observed on sensory

functions. MRI workers exposed to static fields, for example, noted symptoms of

sensorial disturbance such as nystagmus and tonic vestibular asymmetry44. These

symptoms were present during exposure, but no effect could be detected on the

vestibular function thirty minutes after the end of the exposure45. An increase in the

brain activity and a trend for decreased performance in cognitive-motor tests were

observed during exposure to static fields produced by an MRI scanner46,47. In vivo

studies on animals have shown that static fields could induce effects on neuronal

functioning, for example changing amplitude and duration of the action potential48 in

neurons. In vitro studies also show that low levels of exposure to static EMF may

modify membrane properties of neurons. These effects have been reported to be

reversible9.

42

WHO website, ‘EMF current standards: www.who.int/peh-emf/about/WhatisEMF/en/index4.html [Accessed online 25/02/2010] 43

Kheifets L., Repacholi M., Saunders R., et al. The Sensitivity of Children to Electromagnetic Fields. Pediatrics. 2005;116(2):303-313 44

Nystagmus corresponds to specific involuntary movements of the eyeballs; its presence or absence is used to diagnose a variety of neurological and visual disorders. It often reflects abnormal stimulation of the sensorial organ of equilibrium, i.e. the vestibule of the inner ear. Tonic vestibular asymmetry describes a situation where left and right vestibules are not reacting equally. 45

Patel M, Williamsom RA, Dorevitch S, Buchanan S. Pilot study investigating the effect of the static magnetic field from a 9.4-T MRI on the vestibular system. J Occup Environ Med 2008; 50:576-83 46

Toyomaki A, Yamamoto T. Observation of changes in neural activity due to the static magnetic field of an MRI scanner. J Magn Reson Imaging 2007; 26:1216-21 47

De Vocht F, Stevens T, Glover P, Sunderland A, Gowland P, Kromhout H. Cognitive effects of head movements in stray fields generated by a 7 Tesla whole-body MRI magnet. Bioelectromagnetics 2007; 28:247-55 48

An action potential (or nerve impulse) is a transient change in the electrical potential of the membrane voltage of an excitable cell such as a nerve or muscle fiber. This electrical charge travels along the axon to the neuron's terminal where it triggers or inhibits the release of a neurotransmitter and then disappears. (Source: mindsci-clinic.com/neuro_jargon.htm)


August 2010

Static EMF could also affect the expression of genes in humans and other mammalian

cells, according to the exposure duration and the field force. In several studies using

cultured cell lines, an exposure to several hundreds of mT was observed to induce gene

expression alteration or DNA damage. However these results are controversial. For

example some in vitro studies showed that static fields produce an inhibition of

osteoblasts differentiation leading to a decrease of bone formation49 whereas others

studies reported a promotion of osteoblast differentiation in vivo and in clinical

studies50.Such genotoxic effects can be repaired and thus are not permanent. In others

studies stronger fields, like in MRI (up to several tesla), do not lead to genotoxic

effects9.

Concerning static fields, contradictory data exists regarding the potential effects on

blood flow and vessel growth, on foetal development, etc. Moreover, there is no

evidence of the carcinogenicity of static EMF in humans and no relevant data are

available in experimental animals51. Studies in animals exposed for example to 3 T

static EMF showed that static EMF could be involved in the decrease of perception of

pain but these results have not been confirmed in humans52.

2.4.2. EXTREMELY LOW FREQUENCY FIELDS

ELF fields are a possible carcinogen which might contribute to the development of

childhood leukaemia. The limited association between childhood leukaemia and ELF

found in epidemiological studies, along with little evidence of carcinogenicity in cell

lines and experimental animals, has led to the classification of ELF by the International

Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as a ’possible human carcinogen‘ (group 2B)53. A

recent molecular and epidemiological study54 which aimed to have a better

understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying childhood leukaemia effect

due to EMF exposure, suggests an association with defects in DNA-repair enzymes that

could be caused by transformers and power lines66. Nevertheless, no experimental

evidence and no plausible causal mechanism have been identified.

49

Denaro V., Cittadini A., Barnaba SA., et al. Static Electromagnetic Fields Generated by Corrosion Currents Inhibit Human Osteoblast Differentiation. Spine. 2008; 33(9):955-959 50

Sakurai T., Terashima S., Miyakoshi J. Enhanced secretion of prostaglandin E2 from osteoblasts by exposure to a strong static magnetic field. Bioelectromagnetics. 2007; 29(4):277-283 51

International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). 2002. Monographs on the evaluation of carcinogenic risks to humans (Non-ionizing radiation, Part 1: Static and extremely low-frequency (ELF) electric and magnetic fields. Lyon: International Agency for Research on Cancer, Monograph, vol. 80 52

László J, Gyires K. Homogeneous static magnetic field of a clinical MR significantly inhibits pain in mice. Life Sci 2009; 84:12-7 53

International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC). 2002. Monographs on the evaluation of carcinogenic risks to humans (Non-ionizing radiation, Part 1: Static and extremely low-frequency (ELF) electric and magnetic fields. Lyon: International Agency for Research on Cancer, Monograph, vol. 80 54

Yang Y, Jin X, Yan C, Tian Y, Tang J, Shen X. Case-only study of interactions between DNA repair genes (hMLH1, APEX1, MGMT, XRCC1 and XPD) and low-frequency electromagnetic fields in childhood acute leukemia. Leuk Lymphoma 2008; 49:2344-50


To date, in ELF health risk assessment, childhood leukaemia is considered as the

‘critical effect’, meaning that this disease is viewed as the first critical sign of significant

adverse health effect appearing after exposure55.

One of the known impacts of ELF fields is their capacity to excite nerve and muscle

cells. As nervous tissues are sensitive to electrical signals, ELF fields could then modify

brain electrical signals, and finally change the response time for complex reasoning

tasks at high levels of exposure. However, despite some data showing a potential

impact on neuronal cells, the link between ELF fields, neurodegenerative diseases and

brain tumours remains unclear. Recent in vivo studies provided indications for effects

on the nervous system; however, there are still inconsistencies in the data and no

definite conclusions can be drawn regarding humans. It is notable that in vivo and in

vitro studies show effects at ELF exposure levels (from 0.10 mT and above) that are

considerably higher than the levels encountered in the epidemiological studies (µT-

levels)9. Thus, it is important to stress that important inconsistencies exist between the

effects observed in vivo and in vitro and the results of epidemiological studies in

humans.

Recent research articles56,57 have reported an increase in the incidence rate of

Alzheimer’s disease in specific groups of workers (seamstresses and tailors, rail

workers, electricians) that are highly exposed to ELF. The increased rate of Alzheimer’s

disease could be linked to the stimulation by ELF fields of the beta-amyloid58 peptide

secretion59, which plays an important role during the development of the disease, and

a decreased production of melatonin, which is influenced by long-term and high levels

of exposure to ELF. Falone60 reported changes in the antioxidant defence system in the

brain cortical cells of exposed female rats which might be another relevant explanation

of neurodegenerative diseases (like Alzheimer's disease). A study61 on 4.7 million

persons of the Swiss National Cohort during the period 2000–2005, supports the

association between residential exposure to magnetic fields from power lines and both

Alzheimer’s disease and senile dementia, but not of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)

or other neurodegenerative diseases. Hug62 confirms the relation between exposure to

55

Kheifets L., Afifi AA., Shimkhada R. Public Health Impact of Extremely Low-Frequency Electromagnetic Fields. Environ Health Perspect. 2006;114(10):1532-1537 56

Davanipour Z., Sobel E. Long-term exposure to magnetic fields and the risks of Alzheimer’s disease and breast cancer: Further biological research. Pathophysiology. 2009;16(2-3):149–156 57

Röösli M, Lörtscher M, Egger M., et al. Mortality from neurodegenerative disease and exposure to extremely low-frequency magnetic fields: 31 years of observations on Swiss railway employees. Neuroepidemiology. 2007;28(4):197-206 58

Beta amyloid is a small protein (or peptide) which may form aggregates in the nervous system. Such aggregation may reduce synapses function and conduction of nerve impulses and lead to the memory loss and dementia that are features of Alzheimer's syndrome. 59

Del Giudice E, Facchinetti F, Nofrate V, et al. Fifty Hertz electromagnetic field exposure stimulates secretion of beta-amyloid peptide in cultured human neuroglioma. Neurosci Lett 2007; 418:9-12 60

Falone S, Mirabilio A, Carbone MC, et al. Chronic exposure to 50Hz magnetic fields causes a significant weakening of antioxidant defence systems in aged rat brain. Int J Biochem Cell Biol 2008; 40:2762-70 61

Huss A., Spoerri A., Egger M., et al. Residence near power lines and mortality from neurodegenerative diseases: longitudinal study of the Swiss population. Am J Epidemiol. 2009; 169(2):167-175 62

Hug K., Röösli M., Rapp R. Magnetic field exposure and neurodegenerative diseases – recent epidemiological studies. Soz Praventiv Med. 2006;51:210–220


August 2010

EMF with a magnetic field between 0.2 µT and 1 µT and ALS for electric, electronic

work and welding, but not for other occupational groups having a high exposure to

low-frequency EMF.

Associations between exposure to ELF electromagnetic fields and stress, suicide or

depression, even if suspected, have not been well established, and more research is

necessary. In vivo studies on hamsters have shown an increased insulin secretion after

2 or 5 days of exposure to ELFs. It has also been suggested that a common and possibly

general response to the exposure to ELF fields could be the activation of the genes

encoding the heat shock proteins which react to stress63.

Self-reported symptoms, also called ‘electromagnetic hypersensitivity’ are symptoms

defined on the basis of the experience reported by individuals afflicted by EMF72. To

date, no study supports a causal relationship between ELF fields and self-reported

symptoms, such as fatigue, headache, concentration difficulties, nausea, heart

palpitation, dermatological symptoms such as redness, tingling and burning sensations,

etc.

Regarding cardiovascular disease, an association was considered unlikely. Nevertheless

ELF fields could influence the cardiovascular system, for example by slightly decreasing

or increasing the heart rate, by about 3-5 beats/minutes64. Studies of pregnancy

outcomes in women working with computer screens have provided no consistent

evidence for adverse effects on reproduction, no excess risk of spontaneous abortion

or malformations. Other studies observe a slight increase of early pregnancy loss,

prematurity and low birth weight in the children of workers in the electronics industry,

but in this case the symptoms may not be exclusively caused by EMF exposures66.

2.4.3. INTERMEDIATE FREQUENCY FIELDS

Experimental and epidemiological data on the health effects caused by IF exposure are

very sparse. Assessment of acute health risks in the IF range is currently extrapolated

on known hazards at lower (ELF range) and higher frequencies (RF range). Therefore

the deduced biological effects of IF fields include nerve stimulation at the lower end of

the range and heating at the upper end of the range9.

63

Sakurai T, Yoshimoto M, Koyama S, Miyakoshi J. Exposure to extremely low frequency magnetic fields affects insulin-secreting cells. Bioelectromagnetics 2008; 29:118-24 64

WHO. Electromagnetic fields and human health – Static and extremely low frequency (ELF) fields www.who.int/peh-emf/about/en/Static%20and%20ELF%20Fields.pdf [Accessed online 26/02/2010]


2.4.4. RADIOFREQUENCY FIELDS

Heating of body tissues is the main known biological effect of RF. In microwave ovens

this property is employed to cook food. However, in general, the environmental levels

of RF due to anthropogenic sources are not sufficient to produce observable health

effects65.

To date, scientific evidence does not clearly support a link between exposure to RF and

certain self-reported symptoms (headaches, anxiety, suicide and depression, nausea,

fatigue, loss of libido) which could rather be due to a nocebo effect (an adverse non-

specific effect that is caused by expectation or belief that something is harmful).

However, RF fields can influence electroencephalogram patterns and modify the stages

of sleep in humans.

There is no significant evidence that RF cause cancer in humans. The use of mobile

phones does not seem to increase the risk of cancer, especially when they are used for

less than ten years. Studies that were published in the Interphone project which pools

data from five EU countries (4 Nordic countries and the UK), support this finding9.

However, these results can be explained by the fact that the average duration of

human exposure to RF fields from mobile phones could be shorter than the time

required to induce cancer. Further research is required to identify whether a long-term

(well beyond ten years) human exposure to such phones might pose some cancer risk.

The potential cancer risk of exposure to RF from transmission towers has been often

studied but in most cases, no solid conclusions could be drawn, even if some studies

have shown an increased risk of leukaemia in children living close to strong radio or

television broadcast transmitters9. In vivo research in rodents shows that RF are not

carcinogenic and in vitro studies fail to provide evidence of the genotoxicity (capability

to induce DNA-damage) of RF9.

However, numerous studies have shown that RF fields are teratogenic66 at exposure

levels sufficiently high to cause significant increase of temperature, but there is no

consistent evidence of RF field effects at non-thermal exposure levels67.

To date, no effects on functions/aspects of the nervous system, such as cognitive and

sensory functions, structural stability, and cellular responses, have been shown9.

65

WHO website, electromagnetic fields – Summary of health effects: www.who.int/peh-emf/about/WhatisEMF/en/index1.html [Accessed online 25/02/2010] 66

Relating to substances or agents able to disturb the growth and development of an embryo or foetus (Source: www.medterms.com/script/main/art.asp?articlekey=22266 [Accessed online 12/03/2010] 67

Juutilainen J. Developmental effects of electromagnetic fields. Bioelectromagnetics. 2005;Suppl 7:S107-115


August 2010

2.4.5. PRELIMINARY CONCLUSIONS

Carcinogenic evidence is only present for ELF fields which might contribute to an

increase in childhood leukaemia, but at present, in vitro studies did not provide a

mechanistic explanation of this epidemiological finding. If the association is causal, it is

estimated that about 1% of childhood leukaemia cases in Europe might be attributable

to ELF fields.

According to in vivo studies exposing animals to high levels of EMF, there is no doubt

that short-term exposure to very high levels of EMF can be harmful to health – e.g.

causing eye irritation. However, experiments with healthy volunteers indicate that, in

general, the low levels of exposure in the open space or in the home do not cause any

apparent detrimental effects. There is little scientific evidence to support the idea of

electromagnetic hypersensitivity, even if it is often self-reported. Even if some

biological effects exist, they do not result in health consequences: the compensatory

mechanism of the body must be exceeded to show an impact on health. For example,

RF exposure increases the temperature of the body; however, the temperature

increase will only have detrimental health consequences if it exceeds 2-3°C68. In

mammals, most studies have shown no effects of prenatal exposure to ELF or IF fields

on development. However, additional studies on the effects on development might

increase our understanding of the sensitivity of biological organisms to EMF68.

There are still significant knowledge gaps, namely concerning the effects of long-term

exposure to RF. Scientists have no hindsight on the recent EMF exposure and to date

effects of long-term exposure are not known. It is worth noting that the effects of EMF

can be cumulative and build up in the body over time69. Despite the number of studies

on EMF health impacts, there is still a lack of adequate data for a proper risk

assessment of each frequency of EMF. More research is necessary, especially to clarify

the many mixed and sometimes contradictory results9.

68

Health effects on electromagnetic fields. Expert Group on Health Effects of Electromagnetic Fields: www.dcenr.gov.ie/NR/rdonlyres/9E29937F-1A27-4A16-A8C3-F403A623300C/0/ElectromagneticReport.pdf 69

Health and electromagnetic fields, European commission. 2005


3. EVALUATION OF THE CURRENT EU APPROACH

3.1. THE EVOLUTION OF PUBLIC PERCEPTION

Widespread public concerns have been one of the drivers for continuous policy

development and scientific research related to the health effects of EMF. Surveys show

that even if the public is more concerned about chemicals, food, air and water quality,

around half of EU public is also seriously concerned about the potential health risks of

EMF. The public opinion is evenly divided between those who are very much or fairly

concerned (46%) and those who are not very concerned or not at all concerned

(51%)70.

Thus, despite the existing EU regulatory framework which is based on the

precautionary principle and the absence of conclusive scientific evidence on the

potential health effects of exposure to EMF, public concern about the potential health

risks from EMF persists. In particular, surveys show that wireless communication

technology and the construction of base stations near homes seem to be the main

sources of worry. As a result, the construction of new power and distribution lines or

mobile communication networks face significant public opposition. Some categories of

population (e.g. parents of young children) are particularly worried and demand risk-

benefit assessments.

It is difficult to ascertain the reasons for the concern about EMF but the following

factors should be considered in explaining the significant growth of public concern:

Unfamiliar technology: Advancements in “smart” technology and

telecommunications (WiFi, DECT phones, GPS systems, etc.) could mean that

more visible structures that produce EMF are being constructed. The

ubiquitous and invisible presence of EMF and their mysterious nature favour

psychological stress caused by unfamiliar objects and technologies.

Lack of control: many concerned citizens feel helpless in controlling their

exposure levels to EMF or in determining where base stations or power lines

should be constructed, which has expressed through numerous organised

actions from citizens groups. Groups of citizens that identify as being electro-

hypersensitive are also making their voices heard by taking legal action against

various actors causing EMF exposure (e.g. resistance to the installation of new

power lines and mobile phone base stations as well as against WiFi hotspots in

schools and libraries).

70

EC 2010, Special Eurobarometer – Electromagnetic fields. ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_347_en.pdf [Accessed online 16/08/2010]


August 2010

Complexity of the issue and scientific controversies: the understanding of

measurement procedures and quantification of exposure are particularly

difficult to understand by the general public. The potential effects of a multi-

exposure are also very complex to ascertain. Moreover, the results of scientific

studies that sometimes appear to be contradictory, coupled with the lack of

conclusiveness of many studies, trigger endless scientific debates. Facing such

controversies, the public cannot decide to forget the risk and get free from

associated responsibility nor decide to challenge it. Such situation is

exacerbated when the risk relates to severe disease, such as cancer, or specific

groups such as children.

A possible approach to understand public perception is based on risk-benefit analyses

that are more or less consciously performed by each individual. Schematically, such

individual risk-benefit analyses drive one to reject an individual risk if it is not

counterbalanced by an individual benefit. Even a very low or poorly demonstrated risk

will require a compensating advantage. Interestingly, a collective benefit, such as

access to technology, does not compensate for an extra individual risk. On the

contrary, it may trigger the feeling that “others benefit from the risk that I take”. For

example, if someone thinks “the fact that the base station is close to my house

increases the risk for me”, he or she will need to perceive a compensating benefit for

him or herself, and not only for the neighbourhood, in order to accept the risk. Thus,

he or she will request that in the absence of benefit, the risk is cancelled (request for

policy based on precaution principle) or its absence demonstrated (request for more

information). Of course, this schematic analysis is modulated by the cultural context

which may vary across different MS.

Under this scheme, another possible request (in theory) would be to associate an

increased individual benefit or compensation (perceived or real) to the increase of

individual risk (perceived or real). It is also possible to reduce the concern by

associating the risk exposed individuals to the decision that creates the risk: it is

difficult to take risks resulting from others’ decision whereas dialog and stakeholder

consultation may allow better acceptance. Communication is an obvious necessity to

answer public concern in a situation of uncertainty (see chapter 3 and 4). These

mechanisms explain the different attitudes concerning exposure to mobile phones,

which provides an individual benefit and can be individually controlled, and exposure

to a base station which provides a collective benefit and cannot be individually

controlled. Answers to public concerns about individual phones are easier to

implement than those related to collective equipment.

The tables below summarise the risk acceptance of collective equipment, such as base

stations (Table 3-1), and individual equipment such as mobile phones (Table 3-2) by

individuals and the community, according to the risk and the benefit of these devices

for both individuals and the community.


Table 3-1 : Risk acceptance for collective equipments

For individuals For the community

Risk In the best cases, very low or absent

In the best cases, very low or absent

Benefit None Present : access to technology

Risk/benefit Concern Acceptable

Table 3-2 : Risk acceptance for individual equipments

For individuals For the community

Risk In the best cases, very low or absent

In the best cases, very low or absent

Benefit Important Important: access to technology

Risk/benefit Acceptable Acceptable

The tables show that even if the risk is very low, if individuals perceive absolutely no

balancing benefit, they will not accept the risk: when the benefit is zero, the risk /

benefit ratio is always too high. In contrast, in the three other cases, some benefit is

present; therefore the risk / benefit ratio may be accepted.

The 2010 Eurobarometer survey highlighted that the majority of EU public would like

to receive more information through common media such as the TV, radio and press

releases, instead of needing to look for information on the internet and in specialised

publications. Only 20% of the respondents in the Member States have received

information on the potential health effects of EMF. Out of this percentage, 58% were

satisfied with the information (compared to 28% in 2006), but 15% considered the

information as not objective70. It is worth noting that people who are not satisfied with

the information provided are in general those who are the most concerned about the

EMF issue (56% versus 37%). In some MS, where a lot of attention has been attributed

to public consultation, authorities are more aware of specific areas of concern71. Thus

it emerges that high-tension power lines (35%), mobile phone base stations (33%),

mobile phone handsets (26%), computers (20%) and household electrical equipments

(17%) are the EMF sources that are perceived as having a significant impact on health.

These percentages decreased with two or three points over the past four years, except

the percentages for computers and household electrical equipments which increased.

The awareness of existing sources of EMF has decreased. In 2006, 23% of the

respondents identified all the items proposed in the survey to emit EMFs whereas only

9% were aware of this fact in 2010. Persons with a higher level of education are

significantly more aware of the fact that each of the sources mentioned generates

electromagnetic fields70.

The majority of the European citizens (58%) do not consider national public authorities

to be efficient enough in protecting them from potential health risks linked to EMF.

48% of the respondents would like the European Union to inform them on the

71

EC 2008, Second Implementation Report 2002-2007 on the Application of the Council Recommendation (1999/519/EC) on the limitation of the exposure of the general public to electromagnetic fields. www.ec.europa.eu/health/ph_risk/documents/risk_rd03_en.pdf [accessed 11/03/2010]

http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_risk/documents/risk_rd03_en.pdf


August 2010

potential health risks of EMF. Respondents think that the EU should develop standards

for products (39%) and guidance to protect public health (36%)70.

The reliability of scientific experts is also sometimes debated, as in the case of Sweden,

where many people are worried and suspect that the opinions of experts and scientists

should not be trusted, that they are either scientifically unjustified or that experts are

paid by industry to say what they say72.

Interestingly, in the Swedish population, personal risks (the risks people pose to

themselves) are typically considered to be smaller than general risks (risks posed to

others) for both mobile phones and transmission lines. This shows that people believe

they can protect themselves against EMF but they do not believe that others can or

want to protect themselves to the same extent (Figure 3-1).

Figure 3-1 : Distribution of risk ratings for mobile telephones (A) and transmission lines (B)72

3.2. CURRENT EU APPROACH

In the early 1990s, the knowledge of health effects at very high levels of exposure

coupled with the fast development of wireless technologies, prompted policy makers

to develop a precautionary framework for electromagnetic fields. Remaining

uncertainties regarding the health effects of EMF also led to financing scientific

research on the subject. However, this has failed to reduce citizen concern about

exposure to EMF.

72

JRC/EMF-NET. Electromagnetic Field Exposure: Risk Communication in the context of Uncertainty, Pages 35-44: Sjöberg L. EMF Hazards and Principles of Risk Perception. www.web.jrc.ec.europa.eu/emf-net/doc/pubblications/Book_Risk%20communication.pdf [accessed 11/03/2010]


3.2.1. EU POLICY AND LEGAL FRAMEWORK

3.2.1.1 EU regulatory framework

The general framework for EU legislation on products and devices emitting EMF is

provided by the Council Recommendation 1999/519/EC73. The Recommendation fixes

restrictions and reference levels for the exposure of the general public to EMF, based

on the best available scientific evidence, and provides a basis for monitoring the

situation. These restrictions and reference levels are based on the International

Commission on Non Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) guidelines74 and include a

safety factor of 50 for the general public, resulting from the application of a factor 5,

corresponding to the reduction of public exposure values compared to those applicable

to occupational exposure, and a factor of 10 to cover variations of sensitivity and

exposure conditions in the whole frequency range.

The Recommendation incites Member States to promote research into the possible

health impacts of EMF, to review regularly the exposure limits in the light of new

research results and to keep the public informed of the risks and the measures being

taken to address them69. In 2000, through a questionnaire, all Member States notified

the Commission of having implemented the provisions of the Council

Recommendation. In 2009 a new questionnaire was sent to the 27 Member States to

update the report of the implementation of the Recommendation9.

The framework proposed by the recommendation was used to develop EU legislation

and safety requirements that are necessary for all products emitting EMF. As a result,

harmonised framework is in place in the EU to limit EMF exposure.

3.2.1.2 EU legal instruments

Directive 2004/40/EC on the minimum health and safety requirements regarding the

exposure of workers to the risks arising from physical agents (EMF), defines thresholds

to protect all workers from adverse effects of EMF with frequencies from 0 Hz to

300 GHz. The exposure limits are expressed in terms of intensity of current flowing

through the human body and set to protect against acute effects of exposure in the

nervous system. Nevertheless this Directive does not consider the use of EMF in

medicine and particularly in MRI whereas the static field, the gradient field, and the RF

field are encompassed in the Directive. Within the limits set by the Directive, doctors

and nurses who are close to the MRI while scanning is taking place are exposed at

levels substantially above the exposure limits. The consequence of this Directive is to

make it illegal for any worker to work in close proximity to MRI. However there is

absolutely no evidence that the exposure to EMF from an MRI system is more

dangerous for patients than the x-rays that are scattered from a scanner thus the

73

Council recommendation of 12 July 1999 on the limitation of exposure of the general public to electromagnetic fields (0 Hz to 300 GHz) 74

International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection. ICNIRP Guidelines, Guidelines for limiting exposure to time-varying electric, magnetic, and electromagnetic fields (up to 300 GHz). 1998


August 2010

efficiency, benefits to patients and risks to patients and staff of MRI must be

considered to define exposure limits. Therefore, in most EU Member States, scientific

institutions and societies in the field of imaging and health have requested a

postponement of the implementation of the Directive into national law, originally

forecasted for 2008 and deferred until 2012, as well as an amendment of this Directive

to take into account the characteristics and benefits of MRI75.

Directive 1999/5/EC76 on radio equipment and telecommunications terminal

equipment (R&TTE) and the mutual recognition of their conformity, defines the rules

for the placing on the market and putting into service of Radio and

Telecommunications Terminal Equipment. It ensures free movement of radio

equipment and terminals, guarantees they are safe and do not disturb existing radio

services or other equipment, and protects from the health effects of radio waves.

This Directive attempts to introduce innovative products on the market and thus

induces a sustainable competitiveness of the EU radio and telecommunications

industries.

Directive 2006/95/EC77 is focused on the harmonisation of the laws of Member States

relating to electrical equipment designed for use within certain voltage limits. This

Directive, also called the Low Voltage Directive (LVD), defines a conformity assessment

procedure for the EMF emissions of products before placing them on the market, and

defines Essential Health and Safety Requirements which such equipment must meet,

either directly or by means of harmonised standards. Directive 2004/108/EC78 is

focused on the Member States’ implementation of the rules on electromagnetic

compatibility (EMC). The EMC Directive limits electromagnetic emissions of equipment

in order to ensure that such equipment does not disturb radio and telecommunication

as well as other equipment and reciprocally the Directive also governs the immunity of

such equipment to interference and seeks to ensure that this equipment is not

disturbed by radio emissions79. The EMC Directive does not regulate the safety of

equipment in respect of people, domestic animals or property but is only concerned

with the electromagnetic compatibility of equipment.

75

Hill DLG., Mcleish K., Keevil SF. Impact of Electromagnetic Field Exposure Limits in Europe: Is the Future of Interventional MRI Safe? Acad Radiol. 2005; 12(9): 1135-1142 76

Directive 1999/5/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 1999 on radio equipment and telecommunications terminal equipment and the mutual recognition of their conformity 77

Directive 2006/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on the harmonisation of the laws of Member States relating to electrical equipment designed for use within certain voltage limits 78

Directive 2004/108/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 December 2004 on the approximation of the laws of the Member States relating to electromagnetic compatibility and repealing Directive 89/336/EEC 79

EC – Enterprise and Industry – Electrical Engineering. Electromagnetic Compatibility (EMC): ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/electrical/emc/index_en.htm [Accessed online 08/03/2010]


3.2.1.3 Policy actions

In June 2003, the Commission adopted the European Environment & Health Strategy

to reduce the disease burden caused by environmental factors in the EU, to identify

and to prevent new health threats caused by these environmental factors and to

strengthen EU capacity for policymaking in this area80. In June 2004 the Strategy was

followed up by the European Environment and Health Action Plan81, covering the

period of 2004-2010, which includes action on exposure to EMF and was based on

extensive consultations with experts and stakeholders from the environment, health

and research sectors. The aims are to improve the information chain and the

cooperation between actors in the environment, health and research fields, to fill the

knowledge gap by strengthening research on environment and health and identifying

emerging issues, to review risk reduction policies71.

The European Parliament resolution of 2 April 200982 on health concerns associated

with electromagnetic fields (2008/2211(INI) supports the consideration of biological

effects and the review of the scientific basis and adequacy of the EMF limits of the

Recommendation 1999/519/EC. The aim of this is to reduce the exposure levels to

EMF.

3.2.1.4 EU technical standards

In order to conform to the EU legislation on EMF, several standards have been

established to demonstrate compliance with the EU EMF emission requirements and to

specify limits of exposure and test and measurement methodologies (Table 3-3).

Standards cover the whole spectrum of EMF frequencies and limit both the exposure

of the general public and workers. Some of these standards fall under the Directives

mentioned above on radio and telecoms equipment (Directive 1999/5) and the Low

Voltage Directive (2006/95).

Harmonised standards play an important role in the operation of the corresponding

Directive. Products, which are conformed to harmonised standards, are presumed to

comply with the corresponding Directive. When manufacturers do not use harmonised

standards, they should demonstrate how they respect the essential requirements of

the associated Directive83.

80

European Commission – Environment: ec.europa.eu/environment/health/index_en.htm [Accessed online 12/10/2010] 81

Document available at : www.eu-humanbiomonitoring.org/doc/actionplan.pdf [Accessed online 12/10/2010] 82

European Parliament resolution of 2 April 2009 on health concerns associated with electromagnetic fields (2008/2211(INI)) 83

EC, Enterprise and industry - Radio and telecommunications terminal equipment. Harmonised standards under Directive 1999/5/EC: ec.europa.eu/enterprise/sectors/rtte/documents/standards/index_en.htm [Accessed online 09/03/2010]

http://www.eu-humanbiomonitoring.org/doc/actionplan.pdf


August 2010

Table 3-3: European standards relating to EMF requirements85

European standard Specifications

EN 50366:2003 Household and Similar Electrical Appliances—Electromagnetic Fields—Methods for Evaluation and Measurement; limits the electromagnetic fields produced by electrical household appliances in order to protect human beings, animals and plants. This standard is listed under the LVD Directive.

EN 50360:2001 Product Standard to Demonstrate the Compliance of Mobile Phones with the Basic Restrictions Related to Human Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (300 MHz–3 GHz). This standard has been in force under the R&TTE Directive.

EN 50371:2002 Generic Standard to Demonstrate the Compliance of Low-Power Electronic and Electrical Apparatus with the Basic Restrictions Related to Human Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields (10 MHz–300 GHz). This standard is listed under both the LVD and the R&TTE Directive.

EN 50364: 2001 Limitation of Human Exposure to Electromagnetic Fields from Devices Operating in the Frequency Range 0 Hz–10 GHz, Used in Electronic Article Surveillance (EAS), Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID), and Similar Applications. This standard appears under the LVD and under the R&TTE Directive.

EN 50385:2002. Product Standard to Demonstrate the Compliance of Radio Base Stations and Fixed Terminal Stations for Wireless Telecommunication Systems with the Basic Restrictions or the Reference Levels Related to Human Exposure to Radio-Frequency Electromagnetic Fields (110 MHz–40 GHz). This standard is listed only under the R&TTE Directive.

EN 50444:2008 Basic standard for the evaluation of human exposure to electromagnetic fields from equipment for arc welding and allied processes. This standard is listed under the R&TTE Directive.

EN 50401:2006 Product standard to demonstrate the compliance of fixed equipment for radio transmission (110 MHz - 40 GHz) intended for use in wireless telecommunication networks with the basic restrictions or the reference levels related to general public exposure to radio frequency electromagnetic fields, when put into service. This standard is listed under the R&TTE Directive.

However, innovative products tend to employ new RF transmitter technologies, which

often mean a lag in the development of appropriate standards and measurement

techniques. For example, there are still no published standards for measurement

methods of the absorption rate of EMF by the body to be used on 5.2–5.8 GHz cordless

phones and wireless devices used in close proximity to the human body. IEC 66209-2 is

under development and is expected to fill this gap when published85.


3.2.1.5 Merits and limitations of the current EU regulatory framework

With regards to the basic restrictions and reference levels, Council Recommendation

1999/519/EC ensures that the public is protected against both acute and long-term

effects of EMF. Basic restrictions of the Recommendation include a large safety factor

(50) which takes into account potentially more fragile members of the population, such

as children, pregnant women, elderly and sick people84. Moreover as required by the

Council Recommendation, the Commission has to review continuously the validity of

the proposed limits, which it does periodically through the SCENIHR. Thus ongoing

research is taken into account in the elaboration of exposure limits and the framework

proposed by the Recommendation is still valid.

The European legislation on EMF, including the R&TTE Directive and the LVD, requires

producers and distributors to put safe products on the market and into service. These

Directives mandate essential requirements for the protection of the health and safety

of users and the general public. The LVD requires that users of household electrical

equipment be protected from the possible harmful effects of EMF that may arise from

RF transmitters or from the EMF associated with high currents and ferromagnetic

applications85. European manufacturers of electrical and electronic equipment agree to

comply voluntarily with the EMF exposure limits set in the Council Recommendation

1999/519 for all their devices86.

Directive 2004/40/EC defines 10 kV/m as the highest value of an electric field in a 50 Hz

occupational environment. However, in the ICNIRP guidelines this limit is doubled

when workers are not in contact with electrical grounds because the limit here is based

on avoiding spark discharges rather than induced current intensity limit. Therefore, the

threshold of the Directive is very low and the compliance with the limits of Directive

2004/40/EC for the intensity of induced currents seems impossible to test in every

workplace because of the time and budget needed87.

In addition, the basic problems related to calculating workers’ exposure levels are

related to defining realistic representations of the workers’ postures; of the electrical

grounding conditions at the workplace; of realistic impedance of near-field produced

by, e.g., electro-surgery or welding devices; and of dynamic changes in EMF levels in

the course of application. Proper calculations in assessing exposure require advanced

skills, specialised software, and can be both very time-consuming and expensive.

Validation and verification of the skills of personnel who carry out the calculations are

also necessary87.

84

Lambrozo J., Souques M., Magne I. Champs magnétiques de très basses fréquences 50-60 Hz : quelles valeurs limites d’exposition retenir ? Environnement, Risques & Santé. 2008, 7(3) :181-189 85

Zombolas, C. Functional Safety: Understanding the New EMF and EMC Requirements. Available at: www.ce-mag.com/archive/06/ARG/zombolas.htm [Accessed online 08/03/2010] 86

Orgalime European approach to the protection of public health applied to the exposure of the general public to electromagnetic fields (EMF) – Orgalime position paper. 04/10/2000 87

Mild KH., Alanko T., Decat G., et al. Exposure of Workers to Electromagnetic Fields. A review of open questions on exposure assessment techniques. International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics (JOSE) 2009, 15(1): 3–33


August 2010

The precautionary principle (PP) is a tool for policy-makers to manage risks in the case

of scientific uncertainties about the existence or magnitude of a risk. The PP is adopted

into European policy actions on EMF only through exposure standards, regular review

of safety recommendations, support of the research to consider possible health effects

of EMF, etc88 so that policy makers are not forced into critical decisions on human

health protection in cases where scientific evidence is insufficient but perception of

risk is strong89. The PP can be used in risk management to anticipate, prevent harm,

and to react before the risk is established88. Therefore, three components are included

in the PP: hazards, uncertainties concerning the hazards, and the possibility to act88.

In the context of EMF, two approaches are possible in which the level of scientific

evidence needed to trigger protective actions is not the same. On the one hand, policy

makers can consider that no health hazard has been established, thus the application

additional precautionary actions is not justified88. In fact, the Council Recommendation

can already be interpreted as consistent with the Precautionary Principle, since they

contain a significant level of precaution based on the current knowledge, i.e. a safety

factor of 50.

On the other hand, as uncertainties exist, in addition to the application of Council

Recommendations, further precautionary actions can be taken88. In both cases, ethical

considerations and value judgments of policy-makers play a role90. Additional

precautionary actions can be taken only in dichotomous situations, or see as the

implementation of a basic principle which can be applied in every policy action90.

Table 3-4 compares the consideration of different criteria (PP, subpopulations, etc.) in

the main policy actions.

Table 3-4 : Comparative table of the main policy actions

Criteria Recommendation 1999/519

Directive 2004/40

Directive 1999/5

Directive 2006/95

Directive 2004/108

Risk reduction Yes Yes Yes Yes No

Consideration of subpopulations

Yes All workers without others subgroups

No No No

Respect to the precautionary principle

Yes Yes Yes Yes Not relevant

Response to a public concern

Yes Yes Yes Yes No

88

Dolan M., Rowley J. The precautionary principle in the context of mobile phone and base station radiofrequency exposures. Environmental Health Perspectives. 2009;117 (9):1329-1332 89

Rapporteur report - Application of the Precautionary Principle to Electromagnetic Fields (EMF) – Conference of 24-26 February 2003 in Luxembourg: www.who.int/peh-emf/meetings/en/Lux_final_rapp_report.pdf 90

Kundi M., Hardell L., Sage C., et al. Electromagnetic fields and the precautionary principle. Environ Health Perspect. 2009; 117(11): A484–A485


As seen in Table 3-4, almost all the policy actions take into account the precautionary

principle except Directive 2004/108, which is a technical regulation on the

electromagnetic compatibility of equipment that does not concern human health.

3.2.2. SCIENTIFIC ACTIONS

Different types of scientific action (research projects, scientific committees, scientific

projects, workshops and conferences), each having different objectives, have been

performed at the European level.

3.2.2.1 Research projects

The main EU research projects include:

COST (European Cooperation in the Field of Scientific and Technical Research) is a

framework for international research and development cooperation, allowing the

coordination of national research at European level but not providing funding.

Different actions are conducted and the more recent project is COST BM0704 (2008-

2012) which allows a better understanding of health impacts of EMF, of new

characteristics of emerging technologies and of the tools of risks communication and

management91.

The Interphone Study (1999-2005) was a case control study assessing whether RF

exposure from mobile telephones is associated with an increased risk of brain tumours,

acoustic neurinoma and parotid gland tumours in relation to RF exposure. The study is

funded by EU FP5, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and nine EU

Member States68.

The Reflex project (2000-2004) studied in vitro the impact of ELF fields and RF on DNA

and cells development. While results of Reflex project do not prove hazards from EMF,

they indicate promising lines of investigation for further work92.

The Cemfec project (2000-2004) looked at if EMF (particularly from mobile phones)

increase the genotoxicity of known cancer-causing chemicals that can be found in

drinking water in small amounts. The study found that RF did not enhance the

development of cancer93.

91

COST – European cooperation in science and technology website: www.cost.esf.org/ [Accessed online 19/03/2010] 92

EU Research on Environment and Health – Results from projects funded by the Fifth Framework Program. The REFLEX Project: Risk evaluation of potential environmental hazards from low energy electromagnetic fields (emf) exposure using sensitive in vitro methods: ec.europa.eu/research/environment/pdf/env_health_projects/electromagnetic_fields/e-reflex.pdf 93

CEMFEC - Combined Effects of Electromagnetic Fields with Environmental Carcinogens website: www.uku.fi/cemfec/ [Accessed online 12/03/2010]


August 2010

The Ramp 2001 project (2002-2005) studied the possible biological effects of RF on

brain and nerve cells to identify the molecular mechanisms through which the nervous

system could be impaired by EMF94.

The Guard project (2002-2004) assessed potential effects in auditory function as a

consequence of long-term exposure to RF produced by GSM cellular phones,

performing studies on both animal models and humans95.

The Perform-A project (2000-2005) led by the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Science

from Germany used in vivo experiments to determine if mobile phones frequency

cause cancer or promote the spread of pre-existing tumours68.

Research on potential health effects induced by EMF has been proposed by the

Commission to continue in the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) that will run

from 2007 to 201396. This include MOBIKIDS (2009-2014) which is a collaborative

project under EU FP7 that aims to assess the potential carcinogenic effects of

childhood and adolescent exposure to RF from mobile phones on the central nervous

system, in particular brain tumours97.

3.2.2.2 Scientific advice

Scientific advice to policy makers can be provided through scientific committees and

scientific projects.

Scientific Committees review periodically the evidence on the health effects on EMF.

The Scientific Committee for Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR)

was created to provide opinions on questions concerning emerging or newly identified

health and environmental risks. One of the goals is to periodically review the available

scientific evidence on the potential health effects of EMF to ensure that the

Recommendation 1999/519/EC is based on the most up-to-date knowledge,

concerning the possible effects of EMF and the exposure limits98. The Commission uses

scientific knowledge to revise basic restrictions and reference levels. In addition, the

SCENIHR identified gaps in the relevant scientific knowledge and priority areas where

further research is needed, indicating to Member States and the Commission which

areas should be prioritised for financing through the Framework Programme (FP)9.

94

EU Research on Environment and Health – Results from projects funded by the Fifth Framework Program. The Ramp 2001 Project: Risk assessment for exposure of nervous system cells to mobile telephone EMF: from in vitro to in vivo studies: ec.europa.eu/research/environment/pdf/env_health_projects/electromagnetic_fields/e-ramp2001.pdf [Accessed online 12/03/2010] 95

Guard website – potential adverse effects of GSM cellular phones on hearing 2002-2004: www.guard.polimi.it/home/home.html [Accessed online 12/03/2010] 96

European Commission – Research - What is FP7? The basics: ec.europa.eu/research/fp7/understanding/fp7inbrief/what-is_en.html [Accessed online 12/03/2010] 97

European Commission – Research – Environment - MOBI-KIDS: a follow-up study to the INTERPHONE study to be launched by the EU: ec.europa.eu/research/environment/newsanddoc/article_4090_en.htm [Accessed online 12/03/2010] 98

Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR). Health Effects of Exposure to EMF. 2009


Before the SCHENIHR and with the same objectives, the Scientific Committee on

Toxicity, Ecotoxicity and the Environment Translations (CSTEE) reviewed in 2001 the

possible effects of EMF, RF and microwave radiation on human health.

In addition, the European Commission finances many scientific projects to improve

knowledge on health impacts of EMF and risk management. EU scientific projects in

the area of EMF have been strongly focused on the potential link between health

effects and EMF exposure, with a particular attention to RF fields caused by mobile

phones. Examples of EU financed scientific studies include:

EMF-NET (FP6) (2002-2006): is a large coordinated action financed under the

6th Framework programme that aims to collect and evaluate the results on

EMF health effects, considering also the potential risks related to occupational

exposure and to set appropriate safety standards. The majority of these

research projects focus on EMF from mobile telephones and are cancer-

related, and a smaller number investigate possible effects on hearing, memory

and behaviour99. EMF-NET provides advice to the European Commission on

new research results and their relevance to public health and safety issues and

contributes to information activities for the general public.

Since 2004, EMF-NET have organised nearly 30 events (workshops, meetings,

round tables, seminars, etc.) on health effects of EMF, potential sensitive sub-

groups of population and exposure levels.

EFRHAN (2009-2012): follows EMF-NET and will establish a network to allow

the health risk assessment of EMF exposure. This project uses the risk analysis

of EMF-NET and will provide information for risk management of EMF100.

3.2.2.3 Workshops and conferences

Workshops of experts are established to improve the exchange of information and

identify ways of improving coordination and cooperation between Member States. In

September 2005 for example, a workshop organised by the Central Institute for Labour

Protection – National Research Institute (CIOP-PIB) took place in Poland, where the aim

was the review of knowledge related to EMF hazards from occupational exposure and

methods of electromagnetic risk evaluation and reduction101. Certain workshops are

organised to review EMF guidelines, for instance in 2007 in the ICNIRP International

EMF Dosimetry Workshop, scientists assessed the existing guidelines and highlighted

weaknesses of European regulation102. Every two years, an international workshop on

biological effects of EMF is organised; the last (the 5th) took place in 2008 in Sicily

where researchers, engineers, public authorities, ecologists, public health workers,

industrials, etc. share their information on EMF and discussed about research,

99

EMF-NET website: web.jrc.ec.europa.eu/emf-net/ [Accessed online 10/03/2010] 100

EFHRAN - European health risk assessment network on EMF exposure website: efhran.polimi.it/ [Accessed online 19/03/2010] 101

CIOP-PIB website: www.ciop.pl/10522.html [Accessed online 19/03/2010] 102

Roy CR. Rapporteur report : Icnirp international workshop on EMF dosimetry and biophysical aspects relevant to setting exposure guidelines. Health physics. 2007;92(6):658-667


August 2010

experimental results, modelling and simulation, policy, safety and standardisation,

etc103.

In 2009, the organisation of an international scientific conference on EMF and health

was proposed to discuss the remaining questions and to lead to a strengthened

scientific consensus on future actions108. Some conferences have already been

organised, such as the International Conference on Electromagnetic Fields, Health and

Environment (EHE’09) where medical and technical researchers and authorities of the

WHO and the ICNIRP brought together to discuss about the impact of EMF on health

and environment104.

Table 3-5 shows a summary of scientific European actions. This analysis will take into

consideration the usefulness of the scientific framework for policy makers.

103

5th International Workshop on Biological Effects of Electromagnetic Fields website: xoomer.virgilio.it/5internatwshopbioeffemf/ [Accessed online 19/03/2010] 104

Abricem - International Conference on Electromagnetic Fields, Health and Environment – EHE: www.abricem2.com.br/web3/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=46&Itemid=292 [Accessed online 19/03/2010]

May

20

10

P

rom

oti

ng

he

alth

y e

nvi

ron

me

nts

: El

ect

rom

agn

eti

c fi

eld

s 4

5

Tab

le 3

-5 :

Co

mp

arat

ive

tab

les

of

scie

nti

fic

Euro

pea

n a

ctio

ns

Scie

nti

fic

init

iati

ve

Typ

e o

f d

ata

P

ub

licat

ion

s C

olla

bo

rati

on

s

C

om

mu

nic

atio

n t

o t

he

ge

ne

ral p

ub

lic (

exa

mp

les)

In

tere

st f

or

the

p

olic

y m

ake

rs

Co

ntr

ibu

tio

n t

o a

n h

igh

er

pro

tect

ion

leve

l

RES

EAR

CH

PR

OJE

CTS

CO

ST

BM

07

04

In

vit

ro, i

n

vivo

, ep

idem

iolo

gic

al s

tud

ies

(EM

F in

ge

ne

ral)

5 w

ork

sho

ps

sch

ed

ule

d

40

rep

ort

s 2

pu

blic

atio

ns

of

acti

on

m

emb

ers

on

sp

ecia

lise

d

jou

rnal

s

27

co

un

trie

s

New

slet

ter

avai

lab

le o

n t

he

pro

ject

web

site

: ww

w.c

ost

-b

m0

70

4.e

u/

(sec

tio

n

Pu

blic

atio

ns

– A

ctio

n

New

slet

ter)

On

e o

bje

ctiv

e is

to

pro

vid

e a

scie

nti

fic

eval

uat

ion

of

the

avai

lab

le d

ata

for

dec

isio

n m

ake

rs

invo

lved

in r

isk

man

agem

ent

of

EMF

Exp

osu

re le

vels

of

peo

ple

are

q

uan

tifi

ed b

ut

the

mai

n

ob

ject

ive

of

this

pro

ject

is t

he

shar

ing

of

kno

wle

dge

on

hea

lth

ef

fect

s

MO

BIK

IDS

Epid

emio

logi

cal

stu

dy

(co

mm

un

icat

io

n

tech

no

logi

es

[RF]

)

No

t ye

t av

aila

ble

1

8 s

cien

tifi

c p

artn

ers

1

art

icle

in p

ress

Th

is s

tud

y w

ill

pro

vid

e sc

ien

tifi

c su

pp

ort

fo

r th

e d

ecis

ion

s o

f p

ub

lic h

ealt

h

po

licy

Pro

tect

ion

of

ado

lesc

ents

Inte

rph

on

e

Stu

dy

Epid

emio

logi

cal

stu

dy

(RF)

2

2 p

ub

licat

ion

s in

sp

ecia

lised

jou

rnal

s 8

co

un

trie

s in

volv

ed

Man

y m

edia

s C

on

clu

sio

ns

con

cern

ing

mo

bile

te

lep

ho

nes

co

uld

b

e u

sed

in

regu

lati

on

s

The

occ

urr

ence

of

can

cers

of

the

hea

d a

nd

nec

k w

as

mo

nit

ore

d.

Re

fle

x p

roje

ct

In v

itro

st

ud

ies

(ELF

, R

F)

No

t fo

un

d

12

par

tner

s N

ot

fou

nd

Th

e re

sult

s w

ill

hav

e to

be

com

ple

men

ted

by

wh

ole

an

imal

st

ud

ies

bef

ore

th

e re

sult

s ar

e u

sed

b

y p

olic

y m

aker

s

The

ove

rall

aim

was

to

fin

d t

he

bio

logi

cal p

roce

sse

s at

cel

lula

r an

d m

ole

cula

r le

vel t

o e

xpla

in

hea

lth

eff

ects

, hu

man

exp

osu

re

has

no

t b

een

stu

die

d.

46

P

rom

oti

ng

he

alth

y e

nvi

ron

me

nts

: El

ect

rom

agn

eti

c fi

eld

s M

ay 2

01

0

Scie

nti

fic

init

iati

ve

Typ

e o

f d

ata

P

ub

licat

ion

s C

olla

bo

rati

on

s

C

om

mu

nic

atio

n t

o t

he

ge

ne

ral p

ub

lic (

exa

mp

les)

In

tere

st f

or

the

p

olic

y m

ake

rs

Co

ntr

ibu

tio

n t

o a

n h

igh

er

pro

tect

ion

leve

l

CEM

FEC

In

viv

o a

nd

in

vitr

o s

tud

ies

Two

pu

blic

atio

ns

in

spec

ialis

ed jo

urn

als

5 p

artn

ers

fro

m u

niv

ers

itie

s an

d

rese

arch

inst

itu

tes

No

t fo

un

d

Res

ult

s u

sed

by

inte

rnat

ion

al

bo

die

s su

ch a

s th

e IA

RC

an

d t

he

WH

O f

or

the

hea

lth

ris

k as

sess

men

t o

f R

F.

Thes

e ev

alu

atio

ns

form

ed t

he

scie

nti

fic

bas

is f

or

po

ssib

le

revi

sio

ns

of

RF

exp

osu

re li

mit

s to

red

uce

har

mfu

l eff

ects

105 .

Ram

p 2

00

1

pro

ject

106

In v

ivo

an

d in

vi

tro

stu

die

s (R

F)

No

t fo

un

d

No

t fo

un

d

No

t fo

un

d

The

resu

lts

pro

vid

ed r

esea

rch

su

pp

ort

fo

r EU

p

ub

lic h

ealt

h

po

licie

s So

me

of

the

exp

erim

en

tal

pro

toco

ls

dev

elo

pe

d c

ou

ld

be

ado

pte

d b

y n

atio

nal

hea

lth

ca

re s

ervi

ces

as

refe

ren

ce

met

ho

ds

for

asse

ssin

g b

iolo

gica

l su

sce

pti

bili

ty t

o

RF

exp

osu

re a

nd

p

ote

nti

al h

ealt

h

risk

s

The

resu

lts

wer

e u

sed

to

ev

alu

ate

the

effe

cts

of

the

exp

osu

re

105 E

U R

esea

rch

on

En

viro

nm

ent

and

Hea

lth

– R

esu

lts

fro

m p

roje

cts

fun

de

d b

y th

e F

ifth

Fra

mew

ork

Pro

gram

. Th

e C

EMFE

C P

roje

ct:

Co

mb

ine

d e

ffec

ts o

f el

ectr

om

agn

etic

fie

lds

wit

h

envi

ron

me

nta

l car

cin

oge

ns:

ec.

eu

rop

a.eu

/res

earc

h/e

nvi

ron

men

t/p

df/

env_

hea

lth

_p

roje

cts/

elec

tro

mag

net

ic_f

ield

s/e-

cem

fec.

pd

f 10

6 Th

e si

te o

f R

amp

20

01

pro

ject

(w

ww

.ram

pp

roje

ct.o

rg/)

is b

ein

g u

pd

ated

. Th

e an

alys

is o

f th

is p

roje

ct w

ill c

om

ple

te la

ter

May

20

10

P

rom

oti

ng

he

alth

y e

nvi

ron

me

nts

: El

ect

rom

agn

eti

c fi

eld

s 4

7

Scie

nti

fic

init

iati

ve

Typ

e o

f d

ata

P

ub

licat

ion

s C

olla

bo

rati

on

s

C

om

mu

nic

atio

n t

o t

he

ge

ne

ral p

ub

lic (

exa

mp

les)

In

tere

st f

or

the

p

olic

y m

ake

rs

Co

ntr

ibu

tio

n t

o a

n h

igh

er

pro

tect

ion

leve

l

Gu

ard

pro

ject

In

viv

o a

nd

in

vitr

o s

tud

ies

(RF)

10

pu

blic

atio

ns

in

spec

ialis

ed jo

urn

als,

p

arti

cip

atio

n in

2

inte

rnat

ion

al c

on

fere

nce

s an

d 2

co

ngr

ess

9 p

arti

cip

ants

1

art

icle

in It

alia

n p

ress

fo

un

d

Pro

vid

e th

e ev

ide

nce

bas

e fo

r th

e d

evel

op

me

nt

of

envi

ron

men

tal

and

hea

lth

Eu

rop

ean

po

licy

mea

sure

s

This

pro

ject

was

est

ablis

hed

u

nd

er t

he

5th

fra

mew

ork

p

rogr

amm

e en

titl

ed

“Q

ual

ity

of

life

and

man

agem

en

t o

f liv

ing

reso

urc

es, k

ey a

ctio

n 4

: en

viro

nm

en

tal a

nd

hea

lth

”

Pe

rfo

rm-A

p

roje

ct

In v

ivo

st

ud

ies

(RF)

N

ot

fou

nd

6

par

tner

s N

ot

fou

nd

Th

e re

sult

s h

elp

th

e IA

RC

to

d

eter

min

e if

lon

g-te

rm e

xpo

sure

to

h

igh

-fre

qu

ency

EM

F p

rese

nt

a ca

rcin

oge

nic

ris

k

For

lon

g te

rm e

xpo

sure

SCIE

NTI

FIC

CO

MM

ITTE

ES

SCEN

HIR

R

evie

w o

f kn

ow

led

ge o

f st

atic

fie

lds,

EL

F, IF

an

d R

F u

sin

g in

viv

o,

in v

itro

, ep

idem

iolo

gic

al s

tud

ies

Rep

ort

s in

20

07

an

d 2

00

9

9 p

erso

ns

in t

he

wo

rkin

g gr

ou

p: 3

m

emb

ers

of

the

Scen

hir

an

d 6

sc

ien

tifi

c e

xper

ts c

om

ing

fro

m 6

co

un

trie

s

No

t fo

un

d

Po

licy

mak

ers

use

Sc

enh

ir’s

re

po

rts

to p

rep

are

po

licy

con

cern

ing

con

sum

er s

afet

y,

pu

blic

hea

lth

an

d

envi

ron

me

nt

Res

ult

s ar

e u

sed

to

rev

iew

bas

ic

rest

rict

ion

s an

d r

efer

en

ce

leve

ls

CST

EE

Rev

iew

of

kno

wle

dge

of

EMF,

RF

and

m

icro

wav

es

usi

ng

in v

ivo

, in

vit

ro,

epid

emio

logi

cal

stu

die

s

Rep

ort

in 2

00

1

10

per

son

s in

th

e w

ork

ing

gro

up

: 3

mem

ber

s o

f th

e C

STEE

, 4

exte

rnal

exp

ert

s an

d 3

Mem

ber

s o

f o

ther

sci

enti

fic

com

mit

tee

s o

f th

e C

om

mis

sio

n (

SCP

an

d S

CC

)

No

t fo

un

d

Po

licy

mak

ers

use

th

e co

ncl

usi

on

s o

f th

e C

STEE

to

ad

apt

the

regu

lati

on

s.

Res

ult

s ar

e u

sed

to

eva

luat

e if

th

e re

visi

on

of

the

exp

osu

re

limit

s (b

asic

res

tric

tio

ns

and

re

fere

nce

leve

ls)

of

Co

un

cil

Rec

om

men

dat

ion

19

99

/51

9/E

C

are

nec

essa

ry.

48

P

rom

oti

ng

he

alth

y e

nvi

ron

me

nts

: El

ect

rom

agn

eti

c fi

eld

s M

ay 2

01

0

Scie

nti

fic

init

iati

ve

Typ

e o

f d

ata

P

ub

licat

ion

s C

olla

bo

rati

on

s

C

om

mu

nic

atio

n t

o t

he

ge

ne

ral p

ub

lic (

exa

mp

les)

In

tere

st f

or

the

p

olic

y m

ake

rs

Co

ntr

ibu

tio

n t

o a

n h

igh

er

pro

tect

ion

leve

l

SCIE

NTI

FIC

PR

OJE

CTS

EMF-

NET

Exp

erim

en

tal

stu

die

s (E

LF,

IF, R

F,

inte

ract

ion

m

ech

anis

ms

and

med

ical

ap

plic

atio

ns)

an

d

epid

emio

logi

cal

stu

die

s

Ab

ou

t 4

0 r

ep

ort

s o

n n

ew

stu

die

s o

n b

iolo

gica

l ef

fect

s, m

ech

anic

s o

f ac

tio

n, e

pid

emio

logi

cal

stu

die

s, h

ealt

h p

olic

y an

d

man

agem

ent.

3

bo

oks

of

JRC

or

WH

O,

The

3 p

ub

licat

ion

s in

RTD

in

fo –

Mag

azin

e fo

r Eu

rop

ean

re

sear

ch

- C

oo

rdin

ato

rs o

f re

sear

ch

pro

ject

s (F

inla

nd

, Fra

nce

, G

erm

any,

Gre

ece,

Hu

nga

ry, I

taly

, U

K),

-

Rep

rese

nta

tive

s o

f C

OST

A

CTI

ON

28

1 a

nd

of

the

WH

O E

MF

pro

ject

, -

Ass

oci

atio

ns

of

Ind

us-

trie

s an

d

man

ufa

ctu

res,

of

scie

nti

fic

and

re

gula

tory

bo

die

s

9 a

rtic

les

in It

alia

n p

ress

, 1

in S

wed

ish

pre

ss a

nd

1 in

Sl

ove

nia

n p

ress

On

e ai

m o

f th

e p

roje

ct is

to

p

rovi

de

for

the

Euro

pea

n

Co

mm

issi

on

an

d

oth

er b

od

ies,

th

e ap

pro

pri

ate

info

rmat

ion

fo

r th

e fa

cilit

atio

n o

f p

olic

y d

evel

op

me

nt

op

tio

ns

The

resu

lts

are

use

d t

o d

efin

e ap

pro

pri

ate

safe

ty s

tan

dar

ds

EFR

HA

N

In v

itro

, in

vi

vo, a

nd

ep

idem

iolo

gic

al s

tud

ies

(on

EM

F in

ge

ne

ral)

No

t ye

t av

aila

ble

2

2 p

arti

cip

ants

(in

stit

ute

s o

f re

sear

ch, u

niv

ersi

ties

, as

soci

atio

ns)

No

t fo

un

d

Efrh

an w

ill

pro

vid

e a

hea

lth

ri

sk a

sses

smen

t p

roce

du

re h

elp

ing

po

licy

mak

ers

to

reac

t q

uic

kly

if

ther

e is

a p

rob

lem

w

ith

EM

F

The

mai

n a

im is

to

mo

nit

or

and

as

sess

th

e h

ealt

h r

isks

as

soci

ated

wit

h E

MF

exp

osu

re

WO

RK

SHO

PS

AN

D C

ON

FER

ENC

ES

Wo

rksh

op

s o

f e

xpe

rts

No

t re

leva

nt

Rep

ort

s o

f w

ork

sho

ps

In

th

e w

ork

sho

p o

rgan

ise

d b

y C

IOP

-PIB

: 15

0 p

arti

cip

ants

fro

m

18

co

un

trie

s b

ut

in o

ther

w

ork

sho

ps

the

nu

mb

er o

f p

arti

cip

ants

can

be

limit

ed a

nd

in

vita

tio

ns

can

be

sen

t

Can

be

hig

h:

dep

end

on

th

e au

die

nce

, if

pu

blic

as

soci

atio

ns

or

jou

rnal

ists

ar

e p

rese

nt,

etc

.

The

imp

rove

of

the

deb

ate

and

p

ub

lic c

on

cern

s ca

n b

e u

sefu

l fo

r p

olic

y m

aker

s

In m

ost

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3.2.3. SCIENCE-POLICY INTERFACE

The management of this interface is particularly important in the case of public health

issues which are not completely understood by scientists. A number of gaps in the

scientific knowledge on EMF remain and Policy makers have to take decisions in

situations of uncertainty. However policy actions are not based only on scientific

evidence but they also take into account the social and cultural context. Consequently,

essential tools to support decision-making, such as risk assessment, may not be

sufficient107.

The importance of the science-policy interface for instance can be measured in relation

to public perception, in the case of mobile phone base stations. Despite the several

scientific assessments which consider that the current exposure to RF does not seem to

be dangerous, demands to revise exposure limits regularly occur. In the case of mobile

phones base stations the number of operator authorisations is then restricted by the

law due to public pressure on policy makers. Nevertheless, it has to be considered that

the decrease of exposure limits is difficult to implement because decreasing the power

of such installations would mean that additional base stations would be needed as

compensation. In addition, when the power of base stations is lower, the power of

mobile phones needed to establish connection is higher108. This contradiction can be

effectively resolved by science-policy interfaces.

Interactions with all the relevant stakeholders and the development of a properly

functioning science-policy interface are thus necessary (Table 3-6109).

Table 3-6 : Six potential ways of organising the science-policy interface109

Policy and science are diverging/ converging

Primacy of science No primacy/dialogue Primacy of policy

Diverging Science delivers ideas

Science delivers arguments

Science delivers data

Converging

Technocracy model (scientists have political power and technical knowledge)

Policy oriented learning model (societal debate)

Engineering model (contract research, social technology)

In several of the European sources of scientific advice quoted above (Scenihr, EMF-

NET, COST 281, etc.), a large EU network of scientists and experts reviews and

evaluates the emerging scientific evidence on possible health impacts from human

exposure to EMF. They provide policy relevant interpretation and advice for the

development of policy regulations. For example, EMF-NET compiled and analysed in a

107

Martuzzi M. Science, policy, and the protection of human health: A European perspective. Bioelectromagnetics. 2005;26(7):151-156 108

Bontoux L., Bromen K. Controlled exposure. Public Service Review: European Union - Medical science and research incorporating biotechnology, Issue 18. 2009 109

Riskbridge (Coordination Action on Building Robust, Integrative inter-Disciplinary Governance models for Emerging and Existing risks). Final report, 2009


August 2010

consistent way results of research projects to provide information, assistance and

answers to regulatory bodies and industries. In addition, it supports the development

of international standards for EMF exposure and provides reliable information about

EMF effects, in order to support decision-making by health, environmental and other

authorities110. Moreover, a specific project finalised in 2005, entitled EIS-EMF, was

developed to adapt the EMF-NET issues into risk communication for policy makers and

the public, and built a network of EU policy makers on EMF issues111.

In June 2003, the Commission adopted the European Environment & Health Strategy,

to reduce the disease burden caused by environmental factors in the EU, to identify

and to prevent new health threats caused by these environmental factors and to

strengthen EU capacity for policymaking in this area112. In June 2004 the Strategy was

followed up by the European Environment and Health Action Plan, covering the period

of 2004-2010, which includes action on EMF and was prepared through extensive

consultations with experts and stakeholders from the environment, health and

research sectors. This Plan gives the EU scientific information to reduce the adverse

health impacts of certain environmental factors and to endorse better cooperation

between actors in the environment, health and research fields. The aims are to

improve the information chain, to fill the knowledge gap by strengthening research on

environment and health and identifying emerging issues, to review risk reduction

policies71. For 2007-2010, workshops on targeted environment and health issues will

be organised to highlight the research results and to identify research needs for

proposals to be implemented in Community Programs.

The Strategy and the Action Plan have underlined the integration of human health

concerns into environmental policies and have highlighted the need for a coordinated

approach between scientists and policy makers.

The Commission has planned to continue to integrate environment and health

concerns and to involve many different actors in the policies. In order to strengthen EU

capacity for policymaking, the Commission will use the outcomes of research projects

and their translation into policy. However, the science-policy interface should be

improved by facilitating the transfer of research results to policy makers.

The science-policy interfaces promote exchange of knowledge between scientists and

policy makers and allow inter-disciplinary links. These interfaces can involve debates

about assumptions, choices and uncertainties, and about the limits of scientific

knowledge. They are tools for decision makers to understand the issues, exploring

110

EC, Research – Scientific Support for Policy. Environment and health - Healthy citizens in healthy surrounding, EMF-NET - Are electromagnetic fields hazardous to health?: ec.europa.eu/research/fp6/ssp/emf_net_en.htm [Accessed online 09/03/2010] 111

European Commission, Joint Research Center website, European Information System on Electromagnetic Fields Exposure and Health Impacts: web.jrc.ec.europa.eu/eis-emf/home.cfm [Accessed online 01/03/2010] 112

European Commission – Environment: ec.europa.eu/environment/health/index_en.htm [Accessed online 12/10/2010]


options for political action, and develop justifications. Moreover with these processes,

research priorities are suggested.

3.3. INITIATIVES IN MEMBER STATES

Regarding policy activities on the limitation of the exposure of the general public to

electromagnetic fields in the MS, the chosen approaches vary. Each MS is responsible

for providing adequate health protection for its citizens, and is free to decide how to

do so113.

The main objective of this section is to describe the differences in national actions

taken in the period 2004-2009, existing across European countries, at the policy,

scientific and science-policy interface level. Monitoring and research are important

complementary scientific tools for the implementation and the definition of policy

action. The different scientific approaches and their interface with policy are discussed

in section 3.3.2. and section 3.3.3.

3.3.1. POLICY ACTIONS

In this section, national actions following implementation of the EU Policy actions or

being a national initiative have been reviewed for a number of MS. Most MS have

adhered to the EU recommendations while others have developed stricter legislation,

mandatory or voluntary recommendations. The exposure thresholds may cover the

whole, or parts of, the range from 0 Hz to 300 GHz. Such thresholds may be issued by

one or several authorities/bodies such as the Building and Planning Board, National

health Board, a Radiation Protection Institute or others, depending on the applications

considered. The measures taken nationally to monitor exposure and carry out research

of exposure may vary widely, and be driven by different interests such as public and

political debate, national business interests or available funding.

The exposure limits can differ by factors of 10 or more, depending on the frequency

range and the exposed public (workers, general public)114. Among the factors that

contribute to the differences between countries are the selection and interpretation of

data, the reasons for which standards have been set, and the socio-political context

which may influence the level of application of precautionary principle. For example,

many Eastern European (EE) countries have traditionally taken into account the

possible, though still uncertain, long-term effects of low-level EMF exposures when

setting standards. Thus, current EMF standards in EE countries (Bulgaria, Poland,

113

European Commission website www.ec.europa.eu/health/electromagnetic_fields/role_eu_ms/index_en.htm [Accessed online 03/03/2010] 114

Worldwide standards on exposure to electromagnetic fields: an overview, Martino Grandolfo, Environmentalist (2009) 29:109–117 Published online: 26 February 2009, Springer Science + Business Media, LLC 2009

http://www.ec.europa.eu/health/electromagnetic_fields/role_eu_ms/index_en.htm


August 2010

Romania, and Slovakia) as common elements115 generally allow considerably lower

exposure levels than Western Europe countries. For instance, they consider the time of

exposure during the life-time, especially for occupational exposure (e.g. RF exposure).

Moreover, the concept of frequency dependent absorption is generally116 not

implemented117.

Finnish authorities have used the precautionary principle in a different way, giving

advice directed to parents about the use of mobile phones by their children, and

German authorities, similarly, have published advice on the precautionary principle for

mobile phone use118, but without specifying age groups.

In 2008, with an overview119 on how Member States have implemented the Council

Recommendation (1999/519/EC), the Commission has reported the way basic

restrictions and national reference levels are applied in the MS. While few countries

implemented basic restrictions stricter than the Recommendation (Belgium and

Greece, though not in the whole frequency range), the majority had implemented

measures at the same level as the guidelines given in the Recommendation, and some

had an implementation level that was less strict than in the Recommendation.

Regarding national reference levels, the majority of the MS comply with the reference

values specified in the Recommendation, sometimes providing additional guidelines

and promoting initiatives for further monitoring or research, or information to the

public. Six MS have implemented reference levels that are stricter than in the

Recommendation for the whole frequency range: Bulgaria, Italy, Lithuania, Luxemburg,

Poland, and Slovenia. Like these MS, Switzerland also applied stricter levels. A few MS

have implemented stricter recommendations only for specific intervals of the

frequency range, namely Greece (stricter for RF, IF), Belgium (stricter for RF) and the

Netherlands (stricter for ELF)120. The actions taken during the studied period of time

are of course also dependant on the pre-existing guidelines, monitoring and

information programmes before 2004. Germany, for instance, had developed a

detailed and restrictive legislation on exposure to EMF since 1997. Bulgaria has, until

115

Gajsˇek P, Pakhomov AG, Klauenberg BJ (2002) Electromagnetic field standards in central and eastern european countries: current state and stipulations for international harmonization. Health Phys 82(4):473–483. 116

Nikonova KV (1998) Status and implementation of russian hygienic radiofrequency standards. In: Repacholi MH, Robutsova NM, Muc AM (eds) Proceedings of the international meeting on biological effects and hygienic standardization, Moscow. World Health Organization, Geneva, pp 477–483. 117

Worldwide standards on exposure to electromagnetic fields: an overview, Martino Grandolfo, Environmentalist (2009) 29:109–117 Published online: 26 February 2009, Springer Science + Business Media, LLC 2009 118

Webpage for German The Federal Office for Radiation Protection www.bfs.de/en/elektro/hff/grenzwerte.htm, [Accessed online 08/03/2010] 119

EC 2008, Second Implementation Report 2002-2007 on the Application of the Council Recommendation (1999/519/EC) on the limitation of the exposure of the general public to electromagnetic fields: www.ec.europa.eu/health/ph_risk/documents/risk_rd03_en.pdf [Accessed online 03/03/2010] 120

EC 2008, Second Implementation Report 2002-2007 on the Application of the Council Recommendation (1999/519/EC) on the limitation of the exposure of the general public to electromagnetic fields: www.ec.europa.eu/health/ph_risk/documents/risk_rd03_en.pdf [Accessed online 03/03/2010]

http://www.bfs.de/en/elektro/hff/grenzwerte.htm,

http://www.ec.europa.eu/health/ph_risk/documents/risk_rd03_en.pdf

http://www.ec.europa.eu/health/ph_risk/documents/risk_rd03_en.pdf


2009, been developing new legislation on EMF and organising monitoring programmes

at the national level.

The competent authorities in Sweden only recommend the precautionary principle to

be applied for ELF from power lines and electric installations121, while in Finland, due to

the fact that the country is relatively sparsely populated, only a small percentage of the

public is exposed to ELF fields from power lines, and the restrictions concerning the

exposure to this class of fields are less strict122.

In parallel, due to the fact that in Finland, mobile phones are of common use and that

the mobile phone industry is highly developed, the main concern for both surveillance

and recommendations between 2004 and 2009 was focused on RF, compared to other

frequency ranges.

In Italy, measures have been focused on power plants and, similarly to Greece, on fixed

telecommunication equipment. Both countries apply recommendations on land based

antennas that are stricter than the guidelines given in the Council Recommendation.

In the following section several examples of national political approaches are

presented. Apart from their geographical distribution, the chosen countries, namely

Bulgaria, Greece and Finland could also in some respect represent countries with

different socio-political contexts influencing the public perception to the EMF exposure

issue (Table 3-7).

3.3.1.1 Bulgaria

In 2009, The Council Recommendation (1999/519/EC) was still under

implementation123 in Bulgaria. The ICNIRP Guidelines were accepted for the general

population as minimal requirements. Lower limits were set in frequency ranges 0 Hz to

300 GHz for areas where people stay periodically or continuously and areas for

sensitive groups (including children, pregnant women, elderly and ill people).

Accordingly, higher limit values were set for zones where human exposure is rare or

practically impossible due to their specific location.

The national database for sources of mobile communication technologies was in 2009

under development123, partly on initiative of the Ministry of Health. The database is to

provide information on technical characteristics, situation maps, safety zones and data

from measurements.

121

Report on EMF activities, 11th international Advisory Committee on EMF, June 2006, Kjell Hansson Mild, NIWL, Umea, Janez Marinko, SWEA, Solna, Lars Mjones, SSI, Stockholm ; Sweden. Available at: www.who.int/peh-emf/project/mapnatreps/Sweden_2006_EMF_activity_report.pdf [Accessed online 08/03/10] 122

Webpage of STUK, Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority Finland, facts on Power Lines: www.stuk.fi/sateilytietoa/sateilevat_laitteet/magneettikentat/en_GB/voimalinjat/ [Accessed online 09/03/10] 123

Bulgarian National Program Committee (BNPC) International EMF Project REPORT, 14th International Advisory Committee Meeting WHO, Geneva, 11–12 June 2009, available at www.who.int/peh-emf/project/mapnatreps/BULGARIA_IAC_2009_report.pdf [Accessed online 08/03/10]

http://www.who.int/peh-emf/project/mapnatreps/Sweden_2006_EMF_activity_report.pdf

http://www.who.int/peh-emf/project/mapnatreps/BULGARIA_IAC_2009_report.pdf

http://www.who.int/peh-emf/project/mapnatreps/BULGARIA_IAC_2009_report.pdf


August 2010

3.3.1.2 Greece

Greece implemented the EU Council Recommendation (1999/519/EC) in the year 2000

through a national legislative act. For ELF fields, the EU recommendations were

followed, but stricter reference levels were set for public exposure to all kinds of land-

based antenna stations in the IF and RF frequency range. The safety limits for the

electromagnetic fields emitted by antenna stations, were set to 70% and to 60% of

ICNIRP’s values if the antenna station is closer than 300m from kindergartens, schools,

hospitals or eldercare facilities. A ministerial act was published in March 2008, defining

the technical aspects and all relevant details concerning the measurements, which

should amount, on an annual basis, to at least 20% of all the antenna stations in urban

areas124.

In Greece, the national authority for the protection of the general public to artificially

produced non-ionising radiation is the Atomic Energy Commission (EEAE). The

authority, or other authorised laboratories, carries out measurements of all kinds of

sources emitting RF electromagnetic fields, in order to monitor the compliance to the

legislation. Over one and a half thousand audits have been performed till now. About

70% of the RF measurements concern cellular phone base stations (1200 stations).

Measurements are also performed on request from the public. The results generally

show levels from tens to thousands times below ICNIRP’s reference levels. The cases

where higher levels were observed regarded only powerful radio or TV broadcasting

antennas125.

3.3.1.3 Finland

The Finnish authorities comply with the guidance given by the EU Council

Recommendation and the ICNIRP, but also give specific instructions for magnetic fields

to be kept as low as reasonably possible in the areas where the general public,

particularly children, may stay for a significant length of time. For the limitation of

exposure to non-ionising radiation Finnish authorities, give, for instance, a maximum

value of electric and magnetic fields with frequencies above 100 kHz (IF, RF radiation)

and recommended values for the electric and magnetic fields with frequencies below

100 kHz (ELF radiation)126.

STUK -the Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority- states that the SAR value

(i.e. heat energy absorbed per kg tissue) absorbed by head and body must not exceed

124

RF Electromagnetic Fields Measurements in Greece; E. Karabetsos, G. Filippopoulos, D. Koutounidis CH. Govari, N. Skamnakis, Non ionizing radiation office, Greek atomic energy commission. COST 281 / EMF-NET seminar on The Role of Dosimetry in High-Quality EMF Risk Assessment Ljubljana, Slovenia September, 13 2006; Zagreb, Croatia September 14 – 15 2006 125

RF Electromagnetic Fields Measurements in Greece; E. Karabetsos, G. Filippopoulos, D. Koutounidis CH. Govari, N. Skamnakis, Non ionizing radiation office, Greek atomic energy commission. COST 281 / EMF-NET seminar on The Role of Dosimetry in High-Quality EMF Risk Assessment Ljubljana, Slovenia September, 13 2006; Zagreb, Croatia September 14 – 15 2006. 126

Helsingfors den 4 april 2002, Social- och hälsovårdsministeriets förordning om begränsning av befolkningens exponering för icke-joniserande strålning (Social Affairs and Health Decree on the limitation of exposure to non-ionizing radiation)


2 W/kg, and by arms and legs 4 W/kg, respectively127. Further, they state that it is

reasonable to restrict children’s use of mobile phones. Parents are recommended to

advise their children to use text messages rather than mobile phone calls, to restrict

the number of their children’s mobile phone calls and their duration, to guide their

children to use a hands-free set and to keep the mobile phone at least a few

centimetres away from the body. STUK does not find it justifiable to entirely prohibit

children’s use of mobile phones, since there is a safety aspect in facilitating children’s

communication with parents127.

STUK, since 2003, also carries out the surveillance of mobile phones on the market by

spot-check testing SAR values of different phone models, to ensure that the maximum

value is not exceeded.

Table 3-7 : Policy actions in Bulgaria, Greece and Finland

Countries Bulgaria Greece Finland

EC

recommendation

implementation

EC Recommendation (1999/519/EC) under implementation Stricter limits were set in all frequency ranges Limits were differentiated depending on exposure

EC Recommendation (1999/519/EC) implemented in 2000, national legislative act Stricter reference levels in the IF and RF frequency range, 70% and to 60% of ICNIRP’s values Limits were differentiated depending on exposure

Authorities comply with EC Recommendation (1999/519/EC) Maximum value for IF, RF radiation and recommended values for ELF radiation Maximal SAR value regarding mobile telephony equipment Recommendation to restrict children’s use of mobile phones

Other national initiatives

Monitoring programmes under development, measurements are also being done on demand

Ministerial act in 2008, on monitoring at least 20% of all the antenna stations in urban areas

Surveillance is carried out of mobile phones on the market by spot-check testing SAR values

3.3.2. SCIENTIFIC ACTIONS

On the MS level, many different research initiatives exist and it is difficult to analyse

them exhaustively. However, some major research areas can be identified. The

research projects involving the largest number of MS in the period of 2004-2009 were

focused on the potential impacts of the vastly increased use of mobile telephonic

equipment emitting RFs. Several studies have been carried out on this and related

topics in different MS countries, regarding exposure environments, conditions and

biological effects. A number of epidemiological studies were also reported. Studies on

monitoring, field measurements and engineering have also been carried out in several

127

Statement of Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority on 7th January 2009. Website: www.stuk.fi/sateilytietoa/sateilyn_terveysvaikutukset/matkapuhelin_terveysvaikutus/en_GB/stukin_matkapuhelinkannanotto/ [Accessed online 03/03/2010]

http://www.stuk.fi/sateilytietoa/sateilyn_terveysvaikutukset/matkapuhelin_terveysvaikutus/en_GB/stukin_matkapuhelinkannanotto/

http://www.stuk.fi/sateilytietoa/sateilyn_terveysvaikutukset/matkapuhelin_terveysvaikutus/en_GB/stukin_matkapuhelinkannanotto/


August 2010

MS. Among others, Finnish and German research on mobile phones has been

prominent with involvement of national telecom industry.

Another large research area during this period evolved in response to the EU Directive

2004/40 on occupational exposure. The reference levels determined in the Directive

stirred a lot of discussion and induced research activities in several countries. One of

the main questions concerned the exposure to EMF in medical environments, mainly

due to the use of MRI equipment.

In some MS (e.g. Italy), the EU or other international research programmes constitute

the main financial resource for the research activity on EMF. In others (e.g. Bulgaria),

the need for a structured risk communication targeting the public, and the national

authorities as well as the creation of a public database organisation have triggered

various scientific initiatives at the national level involving several research institutions

(see following section) (Table 3-8).

3.3.2.1 Germany

The German Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS) developed a research

programme128 on high frequency electromagnetic fields within the scope of the

German Mobile Telecommunication Programme (DMF)129. The Programme, which

lasted from 2002 to 2008, comprised research projects on the topic of “Mobile

Telecommunication” including the fields of “Biology”, “Dosimetry”, “Epidemiology”,

and “Risk Communication”. Apart from the DMF project, further research in the EMF

field is initiated and coordinated by BfS within the scope of the BMU Environmental

Research Plan. The research was motivated by the fact that, according to BfS, there is

some indication that High frequency electromagnetic fields can cause biological effects

even when the levels are below required German limit values (corresponding to

ICNIRP). The Programme also aimed at finding potential causes of electro sensitivity.

3.3.2.2 Italy

No national programme on biological and health effects was running during 2009, but

a number of studies were being carried out in collaboration between institutes from

Italy and other countries. Research on biological effects of exposure to GSM130-like RF

fields on gene expression in human cells- was carried out in vitro, and the effects of

exposure to WiFi signals on the immune system of newborn mice were described131. In

2007, the Italian Institute for Prevention and Safety at Work (ISPESL) promoted a

128

Webpage for German Mobile Telecommunication Research Programme (DMF), www.emf-forschungsprogramm.de/ [Accessed online 08/03/10] 129

Webpage for German The Federal Office for Radiation Protection www.bfs.de/elektro/hff?setlang=en, [Accessed online 08/03/10] 130

GSM =Global System for Mobile communications, a network for mobile phones 131

Measures for the exposure of new born animals to WiFi signals. C. Marino, Paolo Galloni, Francesca Nasta, Rosanna Pinto, Claudio Pioli and Giorgio A. Lovisolo, Unit of Toxicology and Biomedical Sciences, Casaccia Research Center, ENEA, Rome, Italy. Abstracts for Workshop in Stuttgart 2008: www.fgf.de/english/research_projects/reports/workshops/abstracts/Abstractbook-FGF-Workshop-Stuttgart-2008.pdf [Accessed online 08/03/10]

http://www.bmu.de/forschung/ufoplan_2008/doc/40881.php

http://www.bmu.de/forschung/ufoplan_2008/doc/40881.php

http://www.bfs.de/elektro/hff/grenzwerte.html?setlang=en

http://www.bfs.de/elektro/hff?setlang=en


research project to analyse the Italian scenario of the practical implementation of the

EU Directive 2004/40. An additional aim was to standardise procedures of

measurement and numerical dosimetry, as tools to assess exposure of medical staff in

the proximity of MRI systems132. Epidemiological research has also been carried out

through the Interphone study. Italian researchers have also studied childhood lympho-

haomatopoietic tumours (leukaemia, neuroblastoma and others) in relation to some

environmental agents such as EMF133.

3.3.2.3 Sweden

The number of researchers in Sweden dealing with EMF and health issues had

decreased in 2008 in respect to previous years due to lack of funding135. Many of the

studies were conducted in an international collaboration and most concerned mobile

telephony equipment. Apart from exposure from handsets for mobile telephony, in

Sweden, mobile phone base stations, especially GSM900134, caused the highest

contribution to increased RF exposure135. Söderqvist et al. performed a population-

based study to assess the use of mobile phones and cordless phones among children

aged 7–14 years. A questionnaire comprising 24 questions was sent to 2000 Swedish

persons, using a stratified sampling scheme136. The study showed that children used

mobile and cordless phones early in life and that very few use hands-free equipment. It

also showed that girls use mobile phones significantly more than boys.

Like in Germany, hypersensitivity has been recognised as an area where more scientific

research is needed. A number of summaries from Swedish authorities137 have

examined whether the RF electromagnetic fields could produce symptoms such as

headache, fatigue and sleep disturbances. So far, no study has confirmed that the

symptoms of people who feel affected are caused by radiofrequency fields generated

by mobile phones or base stations. The scientific evidence is, however, much smaller

than those of extreme low frequency field138. Hillert et al. studied the effect of GSM

exposure on self-reported symptoms and detection of fields by participants during

132

Paolo Vecchia, National Institute of Health, Rome Electromagnetic fields and Italy; 2008-2009 www.who.int/peh-emf/project/mapnatreps/ITALY_report_EMF_Activities.pdf [Accessed online 08/03/10] 133

Italy, Present status of EMF activities, 11th international Advisory Committee Meeting on EMF, 11th of June 2006. Notes by Paolo Vecchia, National Institute of Health, Rome. Accessible on www.who.int/peh-emf/project/mapnatreps/Italy_2006_EMF_activity_report.pdf [Accessed online 09/03/10] 134

GSM 900 is a type of network in Europe using the band 890-915 MHz for sending data and the band 935-960 MHz for receiving information. 135

Sweden Report on EMF Activities 13th International Advisory Committee on EMF June 2008 .Kjell Hansson Mild, Department of Radiation Physics, Umeå University, Janez Marinko, Swedish Work Environment Authority (SWEA), Lars Mjönes, Swedish Radiation Protection Authority, (SSI), Stockholm, Sweden. Available on www.who.int/peh-emf/project/mapnatreps/sweden/en/index.html, [Accessed online 09/03/10] 136

Söderqvist F, Hardell L, Carlberg M, Hansson Mild K. Ownership and use of wireless telephones: a population-based study of Swedish children aged 7-14 years. BMC Public Health. 2007 Jun 11;7(147):105 137

IEGEMF. Recent Research on EMF and Health Risks. Fifth annual report from SSI’s Independent Expert Group on Electromagnetic Fields,2007. Revised edition 15 April, 2008. Stockholm: Statens Strålskyddsinstitut, 2008. SSI Rapport 2008:12 138

Swedish Environmental Health Report 2009, Miljöhälsorapport 2009, Socialstyrelsen, Karolinska Institutet, 2009-126-70, Västeras, Sweden, Mars 2009


August 2010

GSM exposure time (real or sham). The study followed a well defined study group

including people who had reported symptoms attributed to mobile phone use139. The

result showed that the study group could not detect RF exposure better than by

chance. However, the non-symptom group reported a higher prevalence of headache

towards the end of RF exposure period, which (according to the author) justifies

further investigation of possible physical correlations.

3.3.2.4 Summary table

Table 3-8: Scientific actions in Germany, Italy and Sweden

Germany Italy Sweden

National research programme on RF fields within the German Mobile Telecommunication Programme DMF (2002 to 2008) Research initiated by the state within the BMU Environmental Research Plan

No national programme on biological and health effects was running during 2009 Research project to analyse Italian implementation of the EU Directive 2004/40, also assessing exposure of medical staff in the proximity of MRI systems

Decreasing number of EMF researchers Scientific summaries initiated by Swedish authorities, examining possible risks/effects, and causes for symptoms such as hypersensitivity

Studies include: Mobile Telecommunication; Biology, Dosimetry, Epidemiology, Risk Communication Possible effects of RF fields below required German limit values Potential causes of electro sensitivity

Studies in international collaboration including: Biological effects of exposure to GSM-like RF fields; Effects of exposure to WiFi signals on the immune system; Epidemiological research through the Interphone study

Studies in an international collaboration including: Mobile telephony equipment; Population-based survey on use of mobile phones among children

138

The effects of 884 MHz GSM wireless communication signals on headache and other symptoms: an experimental provocation study. Hillert L, Akerstedt T, Lowden A, Wiholm C, Kuster N, Ebert S, Boutry C, Moffat SD, Berg M, Arnetz BB.Bioelectromagnetics. 2008 Apr;29(3):185-96.

http://www.bfs.de/elektro/hff/grenzwerte.html?setlang=en


3.3.3. SCIENCE-POLICY INTERFACE

A number of MS (e.g. Italy, Greece, and Bulgaria) report high levels of public concern

regarding the potential health effects of EMF. Several measures have thus been taken

to inform and educate the public and policy makers. Therefore, various approaches to

manage the science-policy interface have been developed to facilitate this important

information exchange.

3.3.3.1 National scientific bodies

National scientific bodies are most commonly the advisors both for government and

the public in several countries, such as, for instance, the Nordic countries140 and

Germany141. These authorities are often responsible for the implementation of EC

recommendations into national context. They identify eventual needs for further

research, sometimes performing parts of the research and the monitoring in the

country. Such institutions also manage the communication with the public (commonly

through internet and media), and organise conferences and meetings.

Although the existence of a national scientific body is not a tool in itself, a number of

factors indicate that it may be one of the keys to successful interactions in the

interface between science, government and the public. For instance, in 2002 the Italian

Government appointed an International Committee to provide advice on the health

risks of EMF and related policies. Following the recommendations of the appointed

experts, the Italian Ministry of Health launched a project aiming at the creation of a

single scientific body at the ministry of health responsible for advice to the

government, health authorities and the public142.

An essential prerequisite in risk communication is that the recipients have sufficient

trust in the information provider143. This is of course especially important when acting

on a governmental mandate, while the governmental mandate itself may be a

prerequisite for public confidence. Further, there is an advantage, in the decision-

making process, of being aware of public and stakeholders’ opinions. For a successful

interaction of all the involved parties, a reasonable level of understanding of the

problem and the risks involved is necessary. As a consequence, it can be an advantage

if the information is disseminated to the public and stakeholders through one trusted

140

For example Danish National Board of Health (Sundhedsstyrelsen), Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority of Finland (Säteilyturvakeskus), Icelandic Radiation Protection Institute (Geislavarnir Ríkisins), Norwegian Radiation Protection Authority (Statens strålevern), Swedish Radiation Protection Authority (Statens strålskyddsinstitut 141

German Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS) 142

Italy, present status of EMF Activities, 11th international Advisory Committee Meeting on EMF, 7-9 June 2006, www.who.int/peh-emf/project/mapnatreps/Italy_2006_EMF_activity_report.pdf [Accessed online 09/03/2010] 143

JRC/EMF-NET. Electromagnetic Field Exposure: Risk Communication in the context of Uncertainty, Pages 15-25/ The Building Blocks of Risk Communication, Peter Wiedemann, Research Centre Juelich, MUT – INB, Germany. Available on: www.web.jrc.ec.europa.eu/emf-net/doc/pubblications/Book_Risk%20communication.pdf [Accessed 11/03/2010]


August 2010

source of information, instead of many different expert groups, and thus, a single

national scientific body may favour the information spreading and communication

among scientists, public and policy makers.

The existence of an independent agency or scientific institution can be an important

factor in this respect, as has been observed in Spain144 and Bulgaria (see below).

Among many other functions, the body can also have an important function in

suggesting research organisation and funding, and also in communicating with the

international scientific community.

The national science-policy interface may also take place through other more informal

initiatives. For example, in Italy, communication and initiatives on EMF are partly being

carried out through a Foundation (Ugo Bordoni)145.

3.3.3.2 Regional or national meetings/workshops

Meetings that addressed human exposure to EMF have been organised in several

countries, including Bulgaria, Greece and Italy. In Bulgaria these were carried out in

regions where the general public is particularly concerned with or critical of national

EMF policies. The Bulgarian National Programme Committee also organises meetings

with media as well as with the governmental administration of the Ministry of Health,

the Parliament and the regional authorities.

Only 2 percent of Europeans prefer146 local courses or seminars as a source of

information on EMF.

3.3.3.3 Training and seminars for the general public

It is important to consider that only a limited amount of people can allocate time and

economic resources to learn more about EMF. Nevertheless, education is crucial for

some groups of population, for example those responsible for human resources in

work places where occupational exposure may occur. When a few responsible staff

members have been trained, they can advice the executives as well as the rest of the

staff on EMF safety issues and thus spread the information further.

3.3.3.4 Public consultation

Public consultation may be a well-defined platform for the dialogue between

concerned parties. It may be performed through, for example blogs or other debate

forums for dialogue, or meetings with citizens’ committees and local authorities.

Special environmental impact assessment meetings are also organised in some

144

JRC/EMF-NET. Electromagnetic Field Exposure: Risk Communication in the context of Uncertainty, Pages 111-119 / Evolution in the social perception of risk associated with EMF in Spain” by Maria Jesús González.Available on www.web.jrc.ec.europa.eu/emf-net/doc/pubblications/Book_Risk%20communication.pdf [Accessed 11/03/2010] 145

Foundation Ugo Bordoni website, www.fub.it, [Accessed online 09/03/10] 146

EC 2010, Special Eurobarometer – Electromagnetic fields. ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_347_en.pdf [Accessed online 16/08/2010]

http://www.web.jrc.ec.europa.eu/emf-net/doc/pubblications/Book_Risk%20communication.pdf

http://www.web.jrc.ec.europa.eu/emf-net/doc/pubblications/Book_Risk%20communication.pdf


countries in parallel with the new installation of power lines. Through public

consultation process, which is a part of, for example, the Swedish legislation on urban

planning, the public who are concerned can be involved in the planning process and

contribute to the decision of constructing new buildings near power lines or not147.

Public consultation may also give useful input to decision-makers, and at the same time

allow concerned public or stakeholders to be informed and involved.

3.3.3.5 Internet

Internet is a commonly used source of information, and is easily updated. Information

can be expressed at different levels of detail, from very general ‘first page’ information

to subsections and links providing more information. In the Finnish web page on EMF,

for example, data on each mobile telephone model tested by the authorities can be

found148.

Moreover, the internet, as a media, has developed several interactive tools where

information exchange and debate can take place, for example through blogs, where

people can express their opinion publicly and receive answers and comments. About

10 per cent of the European population prefers this channel for information on EMF151.

3.3.3.6 Fact sheets, prints

In several countries, fact sheets informing on EMF have been translated and printed, to

the advantage of the people with no internet access. In Sweden and Finland, the

government has prepared information leaflets that are easily understandable by lay

people (Figure 3-2). Around 10 per cent151 of Europeans preferred official or specialist

publications as a source of information.

A disadvantage of this kind of tool is that it is one-sided information and does not reply

directly to the concerns of the reader, thus not favouring successful risk

communication. Accordingly to a study on the public awareness of two leaflets

produced by the Department of Health in the UK149, there is a large difference between

the information provided on the sheet and the information the receiver takes in, as

well as the risk perception. In the study, over half of the people who claimed to have

come across the studied leaflet were not able to recognise any of the key

recommendations it contained. Rather than reassuring, the information was linked

with concern. The results indicate the importance of policy makers developing a clear

understanding of the possible effects of communicating precautionary advice.

147

Internet collection of Swedish Law and regulations (Notisum, in Swedish)Planning and Building Regulation (1987:383) www2.notisum.com/Pub/Doc.aspx?url=/rnp/sls/lag/19870383.htm [Accessed online 22/03/10] 148

Webpage of Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority Finland www.stuk.fi/sateilytietoa/sateilevat_laitteet/laitteiden_valvonta/en_GB/matkapuhelimet/ [Accessed online 09/03/10] 149

Barnett J., Timotijevic L, Shepherd R and Senior V (2006) Public Responses To Precautionary Information From The Department Of Health (UK) About Possible Health Risks From Mobile Phones, Health Policy, 82, 240-250

http://www.stuk.fi/sateilytietoa/sateilevat_laitteet/laitteiden_valvonta/en_GB/matkapuhelimet/


August 2010

Figure 3-2: Fact sheet from Finnish Radiation and Nuclear safety Authority, STUK150

Printed items also have the disadvantage of quickly becoming out of date and their

distribution may be both resource consuming (or inexistent) and produce waste.

3.3.3.7 TV, radio, newspapers

According to the Eurobarometer survey151 television is the most preferred medium

through which to receive information on risks regarding EMF (55%), followed by

newspapers and magazines (38%), and Internet (19%). While being the preferred

information source for the public, often very informative and available, these media

serve as a weak scene for the science-policy interface in many other aspects. Apart

from a perception of what makes people worried, it generally does not favour

exchange of knowledge, suggest future areas of scientific interest or give response to

governmental bodies.

3.3.3.8 Telephone, e-mail

In most countries the citizens may have a personal response to questions on the phone

or via e-mail. This source of information, which is quick and allows for questions and

explanations, is useful for both authorities and the public. The personal approach to an

authority, researcher or other body when seeking advice on EMF may have great

advantages in that the question and response will mostly be very exact, and rapid.

However, only a few percent of Europeans preferred e-mail as a source of information

while 8 per cent preferred other types of personalised correspondence151. The effort

150

Source: www.stuk.fi, [Accessed online 08/03/10] 151

EC 2010, Special Eurobarometer – Electromagnetic fields: ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_347_en.pdf [Accessed online 16/08/2010]


involved may be partly finding the right recipient for the question, something which is

facilitated by the commitment of a dedicated address or phone line. Furthermore,

anonymity may be preferred to giving out personal information, particularly if feeling

uninformed.

The countries below were chosen for a closer study because they show examples of

different approaches in the science-policy interface, and also due to their relative

difference in geographical, demographical and socio-political context that may

influence the public perception of the EMF issue. Table 3-9 summarises the different

national approaches.

Bulgaria

In Bulgaria scientific advice is communicated to public, government and authorities by

a National Program Committee of specialists in the topic (BNPC). Public information

activities exist including:

production of brochures and fact sheets,

regional meetings,

training courses to different groups of specialists or professional groups,

a website152 with regional information for Bulgaria

a dedicated telephone number for the general population for every kind of

questions in the field of EMF safety153.

Bulgaria reports153 on a growing public concern regarding EMF produced by base

stations. However, the concern may have other reasons than uncertain scientific proof.

Since financial benefits are connected to the localisation of base stations, declared

health problems have sometimes had economical underlying explanations. Also in

Bulgaria, there are indications of problems with private financial interests driving

information campaigns, such as private performing risk assessments, profiting from an

increased public concern. There are also reports that information is sometimes

distorted for political reasons, in which case the media sometimes deliver information

that add to public concern. As it appears, scientists sometimes have problems in

communicating scientific information153.

France

In France, The Ministry of Health has published information via internet as well as

leaflets on mobile telephones and health154, and taken the initiative during 2009 of

roundtable discussions with stakeholders on the potential dangers of mobile phones

and mast155. In addition, the Health and Radiofrequencies Foundation156 is a research

152

Webpage for National Program Committee, (in Bulgarian), www.emfbg.com [Accessed online 08/03/10] 153

Bulgarian National Program Committee (BNPC) International EMF Project REPORT, 14th International Advisory Committee Meeting WHO, Geneva, 11–12 June 2009, www.who.int/peh-emf/project/mapnatreps/BULGARIA_IAC_2009_report.pdf [Accessed online 08/03/10] 154

Information folder « Téléphones mobiles, santé et sécurité » available on Webpage for Ministry of Health and Sports ww.sante.gouv.fr/htm/dossiers/ [Accessed online 08/03/10] 155

Actu-Environnement, (French web magazine for professionals in the environmental sector)

http://www.emfbg.com/

http://www.sante-jeunesse-sports.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/Depliant_d_information_Telephones_mobiles_sante_et_securite_.pdf


August 2010

foundation, established at the initiative of the State, (the Ministry of Research and

Industry) in order to define, promote and fund research programmes and to work for

dissemination of knowledge on this subject among the public and professionals. A few

large industrial companies have contributed to its creation. The foundation organises

open scientific meetings as well as exhibitions to give to all types of public a chance to

understand what EMF are and how they might affect health. Moreover, the

Foundation has organised a “blue bus” that travelled through France in 2007 with

information on the topic, and an interactive website has been developed, where fact

sheets and Q&A documentation are distributed156.

A number of mobile telephone operators selling on the French market have also

formed a cooperative, the AFOM (French Association of Mobile Operators), with the

mission to spread information on the deployment of mobile telephone networks,

environment and health. One of their actions is for instance to provide an information

leaflet distributed when buying mobile telephony services and equipment in France157.

UK

In the UK the Science and Technology Committee exists to ensure that Government

policy and decision-making are based on good scientific and engineering advice and

evidence. The implementation of the EU 2004 Directive in the country has been used

as one of the case studies in a recent report158.

When preparing for the possible implementation of the EU 2004 Directive, the UK

reported on an explicit aim of involving stakeholders (e.g. the Royal College of

Radiologists, the manufacturers’ organisation (EEF), trade unions and others). The UK

Health and Safety Executive (HSE) set up two working groups including a broad based

cross industry grouping, with members from a range of sectors likely to be affected by

the Directive’s implementation (medical or technical involved in Magnetic Resonance

Imaging, engineering, welding industry). Both groups’ outputs were used to inform the

HSE and to help develop any detailed regulatory proposals for implementation159.

Another example of science-policy interfaces in the UK is the Stakeholder Advisory

Group, SAGE, which was set up by the Department of Health regarding ELF. The aim is

to find practical recommendations for a precautionary approach, in a process for

decision-making not only based on reviewed science. The group has representation

www.actu-environnement.com/ae/news/debat_effet_ondes_electromagnetiques_sante_6961.php4 [Accessed online 08/03/10] 156

Webpage for French Health and Radiofrequencies Foundation, www.sante-radiofrequences.org [Accessed online 11/03/2010] 157

Webpage for AFOM, French Association of Mobile Operators www.afom.fr/v4/TEMPLATES/contenus_aqqc.php?doc_ID=894&rubrique_ID=310&rubLimit=268 [Accessed online 11/03/2010] 158

Scientific advice, risk and evidence: how Government handles them, Select Committee on Science and Technology. Conclusions: PUBLICATION OF REPORT, SCIENTIFIC ADVICE, RISK AND EVIDENCE BASED POLICY MAKING No. 63 of Session 2005-06 8 November October 2006, available on internet : www.parliament.uk/parliamentary_committees/science_technology.cfm, [Accessed on 08/03/10] 159

Web page of

UK Health and Safety Executive, www.hse.gov.uk/radiation/nonionising/electro.htm [Accessed on 09/03/2010]

http://www.sante-radiofrequences.org/

http://www.parliament.uk/parliamentary_committees/science_technology.cfm

http://www.hse.gov.uk/radiation/nonionising/electro.htm


from public concern groups who advocate greater precaution as well as from the

power supply industry, several government departments and the Health Protection

Agency. The work is expected to include consideration of ways in which people can

reduce domestic exposures to ELF by taking action within their own homes as well as

discussions about precautionary approaches to be adopted with respect to power

transmission lines and the local supply network160. According to the web page, one of

the methods used is involving an independent third party to design and run the

process, and to facilitate meetings in order to build trust and help create a mutual

understanding161.

Summary table

Table 3-9 : Science-Policy interfaces in Bulgaria, France and UK on EMF

Bulgaria France UK

National Committee of specialists spread information by internet, dedicated phone line, brochures, fact sheets,

regional meetings and training courses

Problem with non scientific informants stirring worries.

Information disseminated by both Government and private

initiatives on internet, leaflets, and a travelling

information bus.

Research foundation (supported by industry) organises meetings and

exhibitions

Public Consultation on mobile phone technology

Governmental Committee to monitor science-policy

interaction (generally)

Public Consultation groups with stakeholders on

implementation of the EC 2004 Directive

Public Consultation scheme on use of

precautionary principle and EMF

160

Webpage of UK Health Protection Agency, www.hpa.org.uk/webw/HPAweb&HPAwebStandard/HPAweb_C/1197637106537?p=1158934607761 [Accessed online 22/03/10] 161

The SAGE website www.rkpartnership.co.uk [Accessed on line 2010-03-22]

http://www.hpa.org.uk/webw/HPAweb&HPAwebStandard/HPAweb_C/1197637106537?p=1158934607761

http://www.rkpartnership.co.uk/


August 2010

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4. POSSIBLE MEASURES TO AVOID UNNECESSARY EXPOSURE

4.1. DIFFERENT EXPOSURE SCENARIOS

Based on current knowledge, for each of the analysed EMF frequencies it is possible to

identify several high exposure scenarios (Table 4-1). High exposure scenarios in the

following table comprise two different types of ‘high’ exposures:

A: possibly exceeding protection limits,

B: elevated compared to the normal background level.

Table 4-1: High exposure scenarios for differnet types of EMF162

Scenario Type ELF IF RF SF Comments

Living close to electric installations of power transmission and distribution

B X Usually a factor of 100 to 500 below the protection guidelines of 100 µT

Living close to railroads B X

Usually a factor of 100 to 500 below the protection guidelines depending on the frequency of the railway system

Electric supply to houses via buried wires or indoor power distribution (indoor wiring)

B X

Exceptionally above background, usually a factor of 100 to 500 below the protection guidelines of 100 µT

Use of electric devices (hair dryer, electric shaver, vacuum cleaner,...), use of electric vehicles, indoor electric installations

B X

Possibly in the range of several mT, but only intermittent and therefore below the 24 hours protection limits of average exposure below 100 µT

Occupational exposures as e.g. workers in power plant

A X Protection limits may be exceeded

Occupational exposures in the vicinity of welding machines or induction heating furnaces

A X X Protection limits may be exceeded

162

Hansson Mild K., Alanko T., Decat G., et al. Exposure of workers to electromagnetic fields. A review of open questions on exposure assessment techniques. JOSE. 2009; 15(1): 3-33. Information collected in chapter 2.


August 2010

Scenario Type ELF IF RF SF Comments

Anti-theft devices, security systems

A X X

Intermittent exposures, possibly exceeding protection guidelines between the gates; possible longer term exposure of workers

Living near TV or radio broadcast transmitters or mobile phone base stations, having a cordless phone base station at home

B X Usually well below protection guidelines which are depending on frequency

Use of mobile phones or cordless phones, WLAN

B X Localized exposure to the brain, not exceeding the protection limits

Occupational exposure e.g. RF heat sealers, radio/TV tower workers and radar operators

A X Possibly exceeding protection guidelines

Use of induction heating cooking

B X Intermittent only during use

Workers operating on magnetic resonance device (MRI, scanners, etc.)

A X X X Possibly exceeding international safety guidelines

Precautionary measures used in some of the EU Member States are expected to have

an impact on EMF exposure, particularly a reduction of the proportion of persons

exposed in the high range of the overall exposure distribution. The actions to reduce

the exposure can be sub-divided into two categories: technical approaches and policy

approaches.

4.2. TECHNICAL APPROCHES

Different technical approaches can be used to reduce exposure to EMF. Potential

health effects generated by exposure to mobile phones (RF) and power lines (ELF) have

been the object of study more frequently than exposure to other frequencies. Due to

this reason and due to the fact that they are at the centre of public concern, technical

solutions to reduce exposure from mobile phones and phone lines are more developed

than the options to decrease EMF exposure from others sources.


4.2.1. APPROACHES TO REDUCE EXPOSURE TO ELF

The main sources of ELF exposure are power lines and electrical equipment (Table 2-2).

There are many ways to reduce exposure to ELF, such as the relocation of overhead

power lines away from populated areas or their burying, installation of vector-

sequence arrangements, phase conductor splittings163, etc. These options have been

considered by WHO164 and many other national or international regulatory bodies.

Some of these measures have been put in place in some countries, e.g. in the

Netherlands since 2005, dwellings cannot be built within 35 meters from power

lines163. This distance is increased in the case of buildings hosting sensitive population

(e.g. children), in order to avoid average exposure levels exceeding 0.4 µT. Similarly,

since 1998 in Ireland, the building of electrical power installations and transmission

lines is forbidden within 22 metres from schools and day-care centres164. In the UK,

underground cables are used when the relocation of power lines is not possible165. In

Norway, Netherlands and Denmark it is also mandatory to leave open space between

residences or other places where people might be present in longer term and high-

voltage power lines. Often these measures refer only to newly built overhead power

lines or to specifically sensitive places like kindergartens or schools, because moving

existing buildings is difficult. However, it should be highlighted that there is no clear

and widely accepted scientific evidence for definition of sensitive places. Studies on

childhood leukaemia, for instance, tend to highlight an association with long term EMF

exposure rather than short term. Thus, the rationale for declaring kindergartens but

not residential areas where children live as sensitive places is unclear, given the fact

that young children may spend more time at home than in a kindergarten at the young

age at which children develop leukaemia (age peak between 1-5 years).

Such measures (e.g. to leave a corridor between residences and overhead power lines)

enable to avoid long-term ELF exposures above a defined level. If the corridor is 200 m

wide, for instance, power line-related exposures above 0.2 µT are not expected166. The

total impact depends on the contribution of power lines to the overall exposure of the

population. For instance, in the UK or in Germany, power lines contribute to

approximately one-third of the average 24 hour exposures exceeding 0.2 µT in

children. Therefore, corridors would eliminate about one-third of such elevated

163

Kelfkens G., Van Wolven J., Pennders R. et al. Costs and benefits of the reduction of magnetic fields due to overhead power lines: www.rivm.nl/milieuportaal/images/Costs%20and%20benefits%20of%20magnetic%20field%20reductin.pdf [Accessed online 18/05/2010] 164

World Health Organization - Extremely Low Frequency Fields Environmental Health Criteria Monograph No.238, Chapter 13: protective measures: www.who.int/peh-emf/publications/Chapter%2013%20v2.pdf [Accessed online 18/05/2010] 165

Stakeholder Advisory Group on ELF EMFs (SAGE) report. Precautionary approaches to ELF EMFs - First Interim Assessment: Power Lines and Property, Wiring in Homes, and Electrical Equipment in Homes. 2007: www.electric-fields.bris.ac.uk/SAGE1streport.pdf [Accessed online 18/05/2010] 166

Maslanyj MP, et al. Investigation of the sources of residential power frequency magnetic field exposure in the UK Childhood Cancer Study. J Radiol Prot. 2007 Mar;27(1):41-58.


August 2010

exposures, i.e. the exposure prevalence at 0.2 µT would decrease from about 1.5% to

1%166,167.

However, keeping a distance between power lines and buildings appears to be more

easily applicable in high-resource countries with not too dense urban areas in order to

have enough space to have choices when routing power line corridors. This is more

difficult to achieve in poorer countries or in densely populated areas. Furthermore,

new energy plants are frequently built in remote areas and, hence, power has to be

transmitted to the metropolitan regions where the consumers live. This results in the

construction of new power lines in some countries to transport energy. It then has to

be assessed whether a precautionary approach that avoids building power lines too

close to residences is feasible (a case by case approach).

The decision of how to plan power line corridors remains difficult, as precautionary

measures to avoid building those lines close to residences are usually costly, while it is

currently unclear whether these precautionary actions have any health benefits. Thus,

a case by case cost/benefit analysis needs to be performed in order to evaluate what is

the best option (e.g. building new underground power lines or to remove existing

overhead power lines).

Precautionary measures that do not allow to build new overhead power lines too close

to residential areas or, vice versa, that do not allow to build new residential areas too

close to existing power lines, are only relevant options if the scenarios of building new

power lines are common. As long as no new overhead power lines are built, this

recommendation does not apply and the exposure levels in the general public can be

assumed to remain the same as no action is taken. As an example, few new high

voltage power lines were built in Germany in the last 30 years, thus, a

recommendation to stop building new power lines in the vicinity of residential areas

would have mattered only to a little extent. Further it needs to be noted that such a

recommendation might introduce social inequality: if precaution is taken only in areas

where new power lines are built, those living close to existing power lines where no

action is taken may feel treated badly by the authorities. Thus, the majority of

exposure remains associated with existing lines. Therefore, solutions are needed to

reduce the ELF from power lines in general.

Technically, the replacement of some power lines with cables in the soil is possible;

thereby electric fields from underground cables are absorbed by the earth above the

buried cable. However the decrease of ELF depends on the depth at which the cable is

placed and superficially buried power lines can result in direct ELF exposure on the

above surface for few metres168.

167

Schüz J,et al. Extremely low frequency magnetic fields in residences in Germany. Distribution of measurements, comparison of two methods for assessing exposure, and predictors for the occurrence of magnetic fields above background level. Radiat Environ Biophys. 2000 Dec;39(4):233-40. 168

Stuk website. Power lines. 2009: www.stuk.fi/sateilytietoa/sateilevat_laitteet/magneettikentat/en_GB/voimalinjat/ [Accessed online 18/05/2009]


Furthermore, power line cables could be twisted together forming what is known as

aerial bundled conductor, which neutralises some of the emissions and lowers the

ELF170.

A study about the subsea windfarm power cables showed that as the permeability of

the power cable armour increased, the resultant EMF strength outside the cable

decreased. In addition, the conductivity of the armour could contribute to reduce the

EMF strength. Therefore, the use of power cables having high permeability and high

conductivity could help to reduce the generated EMF169.

As electric fields can be blocked by obstacles (walls, buildings, etc.) another option

could be the use of trees to protect the population against ELF. In this case, trees act as

a shielding and reduce electric fields. In winter, evergreen trees such as pines are

better at decreasing ELF than deciduous trees; nevertheless the effectiveness of trees

is poor compared with other options165,170 and they do not shield the magnetic

component of the field in any case.

Removing existing lines or replacing them with buried wire is very costly and would

require billions of Euros for re-construction, even in one country. The costs depend on

the length and on the voltage level of the power line. It is more and more expensive as

the voltage increases. The cost also depends on the levels of urbanisation of the

considered area. If the urbanisation is high, relocating power lines underground is

difficult and expensive168,165. According to the UK Electricity Association, additional

costs incurred from moving to underground lines from overhead lines could have to be

borne by the consumer170.

Table 4-2 presents some examples of costs to reduce exposure to ELF.

Table 4-2: Examples of costs of the ELF exposure reduction165

Mitigation measures Unit Costs (× 1000 €)

Vector-sequence rearrangement

Per power line 350-1300

Phase conductor splitting Per km section 70-300

Line relocation Per km section 320-1200

Undergrounding Per km section 1100-8000

The relocation of power lines will not change ELF exposures from indoor wiring and

low-voltage power distribution. Generally, indoor wiring does not lead to exposure to

high ELF, but there are exceptions. These exceptions often occur in older houses or

multi-storey buildings with many apartments, as these situations increase the chances

to have unbalanced currents that may produce elevated ELF. This kind of exposure can

169

Centre for marine and coastal studies centre for intelligent monitoring systems applied ecology research group. A baseline assessment of electromagnetic fields generated by offshore windfarm cables. 2003: cvi.se/uploads/pdf/Kunskapsdatabas%20miljo/Flora%20och%20fauna/marina%20organismer/forskningsresultat/Elkablars%20inverkan%20-%20Cowrie.pdf [Accessed online 18/05/2010] 170

Alasdair and Jean Philips. Buying an “EMF Safe” Property - Powerlines and pylons: www.powerwatch.org.uk/library/downloads/emf_property-02-20090604.pdf [Accessed online 18/05/2010]


August 2010

be reduced by replacing the existing electric system with a new modern system.

Following are some of the specific technical options to reduce ELF from indoor

wiring165:

Using wire power circuits as radial circuits instead of ring circuits

Keeping “go” and “return” currents physically close together at all time,

particularly for light and underfloor heating cables

Protecting the whole electrical installation with a residual current device

Using electronic electricity meters rather than rotating-disc meters

Using wire cables which has a screen without the sheath

Putting the wiring in metal conduits

Using extra-low-voltage circuits at home

Using earthed metal rather than plastic cases

However, one of the main difficulties is to identify houses with elevated magnetic

fields since this can only be identified with longer term (at least several hours) field

measurements. In the UK or Germany, it is assumed that magnetic fields above 0.2 µT

caused by indoor wiring can be detected in approximately 1 out of every 200

apartments171. The costs of such renovations could be high and need to be covered by

the owner, which might influence the monthly rent.

The report of the Stakeholder Advisory Group on ELF EMFs (SAGE) advised to apply

these suggestions only in new homes or in the case of rewiring. These mitigation

measures could be equally put in place in any building.

These measures seem financially feasible except for cables that have a screen without

the sheath because their price is higher than a standard cable; therefore cheaper

version of these cables should be developed. Earthed metal is equally more expensive

than plastic cases.

ELF from electrical equipment in homes can also be reduced by changing the user

behaviour. For example, one can reduce the ELF exposure by increasing the distance

from appliances, locating sockets away from the bed, and switching off devices when

not in use165.

171

Schüz J, et al. Extremely low frequency magnetic fields in residences in Germany. Distribution of measurements, comparison of two methods for assessing exposure, and predictors for the occurrence of magnetic fields above background level. Radiat Environ Biophys. 2000 Dec;39(4):233-40


4.2.2. APPROACHES TO REDUCE EXPOSURE TO IF

An example of a successful introduction of self-regulation for EMF emissions is the

development of the TCO standard172 for computer monitors, which was first introduced

in 1992. The TCO standard regulates EMF levels and the labelling of monitors

complying with TCO standard (Figure 4-1) has become a quality characteristic and was

successful on the market.

Figure 4-1 : Logos of the TCO standard for displays and headsets173,174

Anti-theft devices and security installations are discussed here but they exist both in

the IF and RF ranges. EMF levels of anti-theft devices may be relatively high, to fulfil

the aim of detection of stolen goods, preferably also under several layers of clothing.

Demanding lower exposure is therefore in contrast to the objective of installing such

devices. Nevertheless, it has to be guaranteed that protection levels are not exceeded

and employers must make sure that working areas of employees are far enough from

the installations to avoid long-term exposures.

EMF from welding devices, heaters, electro-surgery, etc. can expose workers to static

fields, ELF or IF and mitigation measures may relate to the work area and/or workers’

exposure or to the source. Technical actions include the reduction of unnecessary

exposure through an appropriate design of electrical devices or through shielding.

Personal protection equipment, such as gloves, safety shoes and electromagnetic

shielding structures that are adapted to the characteristics of workers’ body and to

their activities can then be used175,176.

172 The TCO labelling system was created following observations of an increase in health problems among

office employees, related to poorly designed IT equipment. TCO Development is a limited company owned by TCO, Tjänstemännens Centralorganisation (the Swedish Confederation of Professional Employees). TCO Development is a member of GEN, the Global Eco-labelling Network. TCO Development website is available on www.tcodevelopment.com [Accessed online 05/07/2010] 173

Futura-Environnement. Ordinateurs et téléphones portables : quelques réflexes verts : www.futura-sciences.com/fr/news/t/developpement-durable-1/d/ordinateurs-et-telephones-portables-quelques-reflexes-verts_18775/ [Accessed online 25/05/2010] 174

Plantronics Sound Innovation. TCO Approved: www.plantronics.com/europe_union/en_GB/company/tco.jsp [Accessed online 25/05/2010] 175

European Agency for Safety and Health at Work. Working Environment Information - Assessment, elimination and substantial reduction of occupational risks: osha.europa.eu/en/publications/reports/TEWE09001ENC [Accessed online 19/05/2010] 176

Falsaperla R., Spagnoli G., Rossi P. Electromagnetic fields: principles of exposure mitigation. International Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics. 2006; 12(2): 195–200


August 2010

4.2.3. APPROACHES TO REDUCE EXPOSURE TO RF

The major contributions of residential RF exposure come from mobile phone base

stations and cordless phone base stations. New technologies like wireless computer

networks (WLAN)177 contribute further to this exposure. Cordless phone base stations

appear to contribute an unnecessary amount of exposure, because many of the base

stations emit RF also when the handset is not in use. This is particularly so with the so-

called DECT (“Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications”) technology178.

However, it is technologically feasible to produce base stations generating EMF only

during use. To date the market share of such products is low.

With regard to the location of mobile phone base stations, similar considerations apply

as in regard to power lines. Precautionary measures, such as demanding

technologically feasible lower emissions as in Switzerland, might be applied. However,

this might increase costs for setting up mobile phone networks and might result in

additional base stations. These aspects should also be communicated to the public.

The system of power adaption of mobile phones also has a direct effect on exposure.

With an excellent connection to the nearest base station, the power level is reduced by

a factor of up to 1000 times compared with a very bad connection to the nearest base

station when the mobile phone is on full power. For instance, the GSM (“Global System

for Mobile Communications”)178 900 MHz mobile phones operate with 15 power levels

from 2 W to 0.003 W. If the phone is receiving a strong signal from a particular base

station, mobile phones will require less power to communicate. The new UMTS

(Universal Mobile Telecommunications System)179 technology is already related to

lower mean power levels than the GSM technology, and as a consequence of the

replacement of GSM by UMTS, the average exposure levels by amount of use become

lower.

User behaviour and network optimisation can equally influence individual EMF

exposure. Indoor use of mobile phones or use while moving or in very busy networks is

usually related to higher exposure. Asking operators to optimise networks may result

in more base stations.

The benefits of moving mobile phone base stations are complex to evaluate. Removing

mobile phone base stations from residential areas would reduce the number of

177

A wireless local area network (WLAN) provides a connection to Internet and allows the communication of different devices via a wireless method. Wi-Fi is an example of WLAN. 178

DECT (Digital Enhanced Cordless Telecommunications) is a standard for digital cordless phones. Like another important wireless standard, Global System for Mobile communication (GSM), DECT uses time division multiple access (TDMA) to transmit radio signals to phones and to access a fixed telecoms network via radio. Whereas GSM is optimized for mobile travel over large areas, DECT is designed especially for a smaller area with a large number of users, such as in cities and corporate complexes. A user can have a telephone equipped for both GSM and DECT. 179

Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) is the European standard for the third-generation (3G) mobile communication systems which provides an enhanced range of multimedia services using radio spectrum.


persons who live in the main beam180 of the base station. Conversely, exposures of

individuals might also increase if the mobile phone has to increase emission power to

communicate with a base station which is further away. Average exposure levels might

also increase if such an approach requires the building of additional base stations to

achieve the same coverage. No general assessment can be made since this generally

depends on the local situation.

As explained above, in respect to the sitting of mobile phone base stations, it is not

clear what the impacts of avoiding higher exposures by the base station are, with

regard to the exposure from mobile phones which need to increase their emission

power, or by needing additional base stations, on the vast majority of persons not

living in the main beam of an antenna. Systematic studies are urgently needed to prove

or refute the usefulness of such precautionary measures.

Figure 4-2 shows that at a higher distance, the lower exposure to EMF from the base

station may be counterbalanced by increased emissions from the mobile phone.

Figure 4-2: Exposure from base stations and mobile phones according to their relative location

Users should receive clear instructions on how to use mobile phones with reduced

power and adapt their behaviour (see also section 4.3.3. ). Furthermore, mobile

phones should always be sold together with headsets which permit to reduce head

exposure even if the absorption in other parts of the body close to the mobile phone

may increase181.

180

The main beam is the zone of EMF emission caused by mobile phone base stations. 181

Health Protection Agency. Mobile telephony and health exposures from mobile phones. 2008: www.hpa.org.uk/webw/HPAweb&HPAwebStandard/HPAweb_C/1195733844923?p=1158934607786 [Accessed online 18/05/2010]


August 2010

People can also reduce their exposure to EMF by limiting the length and the number of

their calls. In cordless phones a loudspeaker can be used to take the phone away from

the head and the body182.

Moreover, other communication systems also have to be considered. There is a clear

benefit in good communication systems for the police, fire fighters and ambulances,

and here exposure reduction measures have to be balanced against this benefit.

Analogue broadcast stations for radio and TV often operate in the mega-watts range

and therefore lead to much higher exposure levels than the other communication

systems; however, they are currently being replaced by digital systems with lower EMF

levels. Military installations often operate high power antennas, but little information

is publicly available on their exposure distributions.

4.2.4. APPROACHES TO REDUCE EXPOSURE TO SF

Not many technical options exist to reduce the exposure to SF. Conductor materials

can be used to protect against electric static fields but magnetic static fields are

difficult to shield, they can be mitigated with ferromagnetic materials such as iron,

nickel and cobalt. The choice of the material is important because the value of

magnetic permeability of ferromagnetic materials changes with magnetic field

strength175.

4.3. POLICY APPROCHES

Policy options which could be chosen to lower EMF exposure include:

Setting up legislation on limit values for emission or exposure, monitoring or

technical actions in planning, renovation and new construction of buildings and

power lines.

Legislative recommendations on emission or exposure.

Advice on precautions targeting general public.

Exposure limits may be established by policy makers in order to limit human exposure

to EMF in a living or working environment. These types of limits normally incorporate

safety factors. Guidance of best practices limiting personal exposure can also be

developed183.

Policy actions can therefore be set up through entirely new policies or regulations, but

also through the modification of existing policies or regulations as well as the revision

of existing guidelines or recommendations. To this aim, policy makers in the MS could

182

Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association. Practical Advice on Reducing Exposure from Mobile Phones: www.amta.org.au/pages/Practical.Advice.on.Reducing.Exposure.from.Mobile.Phones [Accessed online 19/05/2010] 183

WHO, Extremely Low Frequency Fields Environmental Health Criteria Monograph No.238, 2008. Chapter 13. Accessible on the WHO website: www.who.int/peh-emf/publications/elf_ehc/en/index.html [Accessed online 25/03/2010]

http://www.who.int/peh-emf/publications/elf_ehc/en/index.html


choose to implement international guidelines such as the EU guideline or the ICNIRP

recommendations, or, at the national level, choose to decrease exposure limits using

even stricter guidance. This was the case, for example for Greece, where exposure

limits were defined for sensitive groups to 60 or 70 % of the ICNIRP guideline values

(see section 3.3.1. ).

Legislation demanding protection of the public could alternatively be used to motivate

the production of recommendations or guidelines by competent authorities. Existing

international limit values or guidelines (e.g. Directive 2004/40/EC, Council

Recommendation 1999/519/EC) can be used in national administration, or be adjusted

to stricter levels depending on the evolution of epidemiological studies studying the

exposure effects linked to long- or short term exposure. Another aspect to consider is

that guidelines or recommendation are easier to revise than legislation as more

scientific information on possible health effects becomes available.

Setting EMF emission standards for technical equipment is another option of policy

action. Policy options could also include funding or promoting research programmes on

the topic of exposure and potential need for protection. Furthermore, policy makers

may choose to improve the science/policy interface communication and promote

coordination between political and scientific stakeholders. They can also take action to

improve the dissemination of information on EMF associated risks, or purpose action

plans involving different types of stakeholders.

4.3.1. POLICY APPROACHES TO REDUCE EXPOSURE TO ELF

4.3.1.1 Policy measures to reduce the exposure to power lines

There are several possible policy options to set up corridors (see section 4.2.1 above)

between buildings and power lines. Of course, the most evident option is to provide

general procedures for planning and restrict the construction permits accordingly.

Legislation on corridors may be built up to provide either indications on maximum

exposure limits, or a minimal distance from each respective type of power line. The

enforcement of a minimal distance is generally easier to apply when conceiving an

urban planning rather than later on (e.g. during renovation), because no EMF

measurements or expert advice are needed in situ.

In urban planning, a case-by-case approach can often be useful in decisions concerning

the location of new buildings or power lines. When assessing the overall impacts of a

project on health and environment there are many aspects to take into account. There

may be situations where it is relevant to demand stricter or less strict exposure levels,

depending on what other health or environmental issues are taken into account.

Legislative action in the form of legally enforceable exposure limits does not allow

flexibility in planning which may be needed in such cases, but on the other hand it

provides a strong support for the local authorities.


August 2010

The use of recommendations/guidelines to set up corridors between buildings and

power lines could take different forms. For example, in Sweden, the National Board on

Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) recommend185 that exposure should be limited

through design or location of the power line, and that exposure should not be elevated

for the public compared to reference values. This may, in practice, be implemented

through the creation of corridors when constructing new buildings. However, power

line owners, when applying for permission to build a new power line, would have to

ensure that once the new line is built, no new homes are constructed within the

specified distance, by demonstrating rights over land adjacent to the line184. Whether

this policy option will impose a cost on power line operators will also depend on the

value of the land, i.e. whether the demand for land (and thus prices) on a certain

location is high or not. However, it must be remembered that the size of the corridor

needed will depend on the type of power line, and the recommended exposure level.

In the case of Sweden, the currently recommend reference value for acute exposure

normally does not impose changes on the planning process. Under the largest power

lines (400 kV) the field strength normally amount185 to 20 – 30 μT, and the reference

value for 50 Hz is 100 μT. Swedish authorities generally recommend that long term

exposure to ELF exceeding 0.4 μT should be avoided. The Figure 4-3 gives an idea of

the corridor normally needed to avoid exceeding the recommended limit value.

Another aspect to consider is the psychological aspect of residing too close to a power

line which, independently of the real risk, can affect the urban development of a

specific area. In the early planning and permission stages, authorities could thus advice

the electricity company seeking to build a new power to look for locations in non

populated areas, in order to avoid such undesirable effects.

In any case, the use of the best available technique could be requested by policy

makers. Thus, for instance, the power line owner may be demanded to use a specific,

low emitting, technical design to reduce EMF exposure. Utility companies could be

encouraged through legislative tools to choose the optimal design (with regard to EMF

emission) for all new lines, and also be encouraged to convert existing lines where

possible and justifiable. It can be an option to ban the specific types of power lines

known to create high exposure levels and existing power lines may be improved in the

context of general repairing and maintenance schemes.

Of course, for any policy option, the implementing authorities need a suitable

administrative framework. This should be coupled to some technical information,

implying an additional cost for training and eventual monitoring campaigns.

184

R K Partnership Ltd, SAGE, Stakeholder Advisory Group on ELF EMFs (SAGE) Precautionary approaches to ELF EMFs First Interim Assessment: Power Lines and Property, Wiring in Homes, and Electrical Equipment in Homes, UK, 2007 185

The Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare, (Socialstyrelsen) Meddelandeblad, Electromagnetic fields from power lines Communication on Elektromagnetiska fält från kraftledningar, June 2005


Figure 4-3 : ELF magnetic field values based on the distance to power line185

Another factor to consider is that, due to logistic and cost issues, the implementation

of this kind of policy option will only be feasible in the case of future urban structures,

with little or no effect on the present overall exposure of the European population. The

majority of exposure will thus remain associated with existing lines. This means that

recommendations applied on new lines may not significantly affect the current public

exposure, but avoid its increasing in the future.

4.3.1.2 Policy measures to reduce the exposure from indoor wiring and

other electrical devices

Standardisation of electrical equipment already exists in many countries. In order to

limit, as far as possible, exposure to ELF from indoor wiring and other electrical

devices, introduction of new technical standards or modification of the existing

standards may be used. In countries where specific organisation for standardisation of

electrical equipment exist, the administrative cost of creating new standards or

modifying the existing ones is of course lower than for other countries. However, the

definition of new technical standards may demand a multi-stakeholders consultation

process which can be time and resource consuming.

The implementation of a technical standard on electrical equipment is generally well

received by the public because it contributes to an increased feeling of security. The


August 2010

negative side is that standards take time to develop, and the best available technique

may quickly be replaced by an even better one before the finalisation of the decision

process. This means that sometimes ‘just‘ fulfilling a standard may not demand from

the producer or electrician to use the best available technique available at that

moment. Standards may also give a false sense of security, or may, if they differ a lot

from the indications of risk in current science, undermine the possibilities to make a

science based assessment164.

Through policy actions, local authorities could be encouraged to promote specific

monitoring and measurements in their areas. For example, in the same way as public

estates are sometimes screened to find buildings leaking heat and thus causing

unnecessary energy consumption, authorities could monitor the ELF exposure levels

for sensitive groups and remove indoor high current structures. Through municipality

action plans, wire code inspections in homes, schools, offices, etc. could be performed.

This again increases the feeling of security among citizens, but may also increase

insecurity for people in properties where no action is taken. The need for information

and communication with the public may therefore be rather large. Wiring and other

equipment can often be replaced within renovation schemes for properties, see

section 4.2.1.

Other possible policy measures include:

Programmes of education and information for electricians

Information to public on precaution on how to limit exposure of ELF EMF in

homes, for instance by turning off devices, choosing the right location of beds,

etc. This could be a useful tool to encourage the population to take

precautionary action.

4.3.2. POLICY APPROACHES TO REDUCE EXPOSURE TO IF

Several preventive measures could be taken to reduce IF exposure especially in the

working environment. Occupational exposure to IF is generated, for example, by anti

theft devices in shops, by MRI scanners in hospitals and by computers in offices (Table

2-3). A policy measure could be to implement an action programme to prevent and

measure the exposure of specific groups of workers. Such a scheme could be

implemented as legislation or a voluntary scheme on State initiative.

A reorganisation of the working environment, for instance, may allow avoiding the

presence of workers close to IF emitting devices or electric cables. These measures can

be generally implemented at moderate cost and their effectiveness is strengthened by

workers’ education and training. This kind of measures could be strengthened by ad

hoc inspections to verify that the safety instructions are appropriately followed.

Another possible action could be to have a mandatory medical register for exposed

workers who should be regularly examined to determine whether they present


harmful health effects186. Worker Unions could be a possible stakeholder in developing

a suitable programme in agreement with industrial R&D scientific staff, occupational

medical doctors and policy makers. There is also the option to plan preventive health

examinations for exposed workers and set up a specific follow up in coordination with

occupational doctors. As lack of such information is relatively common, occupational

doctors should be considered an important target group for information on EMF

sources and highly exposed professions187.

Relatively little research has addressed the issues related to IF (and indeed also SF)

frequency ranges, and the specific exposure situations that may occur following the

development of new types of technology. Therefore policy options in these frequency

ranges could include funding or initiating research programmes, as well as improving

the research-stakeholder interface on the topic of exposure and potential need for

protection regarding occupational exposure. The advantages of promoting research are

the outputs which can be used as a basis for considerations in decision-making, as well

as in the development of technical solutions185. However, the development of new

scientific programmes is often time consuming, and the results may not always be

directly applicable in policy making.

Other possible policy measures include:

Standardisation could be used for computer screens, induction hobs and

hotplates and telephonic equipment, computer and television screens

containing cathode ray tubes, compact fluorescent lamps and more

Programmes of education and information for staff exposed to elevated levels

of exposure, on IF-related risks and the requirements of safe work procedure

such as those working close to devices (e.g. in shop exit doors), electric

engines, and card readers or in industrial processes such as welding, medical

applications such as electrosurgery. Educating key personnel may also mean

that these persons can choose low-emitting equipment on purchases, which in

turn puts a pressure on producers.

Information to public on exposure of IF EMF in homes, for example the effect

of turning off devices, choosing location of beds etc., could be a useful tool to

encourage the population to take precautionary action.

Regarding advantages and disadvantages of legislation and recommendations see the

discussion on power lines in section 4.2.1. On a workplace, however, the employer may

have smaller interest in taking recommendations into account than legislation. Again, it

186

Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones (UK), Mobile Phones and Health. 2000 Available online at www.iegmp.org.uk/report/text.htm [Accessed online 08/03/2010] The Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones, was formed following a decision of the UK Government in 1999 to establish an independent expert group to examine possible effects of mobile phones, base stations and transmitters on health. The group was operative until 2000, with input from a large range of stakeholders. 187

Jolanta Karpowicz, Central Institute for Labour Protection – National Research Institute, Poland, Maila Hietanen, Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Finland, Krzysztof Gryz, Central Institute for Labour Protection – National Research Institute, Poland. International EU Directive, ICNIRP Guidelines and Polish Legislation on Electromagnetic Fields. Journal of Occupational Safety and Ergonomics (JOSE), Vol. 12, No. 2, 125–136, 2006.

http://www.iegmp.org.uk/report/text.htm


August 2010

is important that the staff has access to information and can put pressure on the

management in case IF related risks are ignored in the work place.

4.3.3. POLICY APPROACHES TO REDUCE EXPOSURE TO RF

4.3.3.1 Limiting exposure from mobile phones and similar devices

The question of exposure caused by the vast and increasing use of mobile phones and

similar devices may be addressed in several ways by policy measures. When it comes

to personal use, one policy option is information and recommendations to public on

amount of use, type of equipment to use, and how to use it to reduce exposure, as a

matter of precaution. German authorities, for instance, have published advice on the

precautionary principle for mobile phone use188. Such advice could be part of the user

manual, and could include instructions on how to reduce output power while using the

mobile phone for example by keeping a certain distance between the mobile phone

and the body (15 – 25 mm), or the benefits of avoiding the use of mobile phones while

moving. Stricter policy actions could involve prohibiting of certain types of services

which result in increased exposure for sensitive groups. An example could be a ban on

offers from mobile phone operators of flat rates for children and teenagers. Advice

could also be a relatively inexpensive option, whereas a ban on certain services would

involve considerable processes of communication with stakeholders, namely the

mobile telephony services sector. There may also be a problem on international

market if services that are banned in one country are available in a neighbouring

country.

The social aspect of security and communication linked to mobile phones is also an

important aspect to be taken into account. Many parents and children feel safer if they

know that they can reach each other if something unexpected occurs. The use of ICE

numbers189 on the mobile phone is also an example of how mobile devices can improve

the feeling of security. The benefits of such measures may be debated, since there is to

date no clear scientific proof of adverse effects from using mobile phones. On the

other hand, guidance on many precautionary or mitigation measures is usually a low

cost policy option.

Another policy option is the mandatory labelling of equipment to inform consumers

and control exposure. For example, all mobile phones sold in Germany must comply

with a limit value for SAR190 radiation (which must not exceed 2 W/kg). Usually the

manufacturers provide the SAR value of each phone in the instruction manual and on

their website. A list of SAR values for the available mobile phones can be found on the

188

German Federal Office for Radiation Protection, Webpage: www.bfs.de/en/elektro/faq/emf_faq_vorsorge.html, [Accessed online 08/03/2010] 189

ICE is an abbreviation of ‘In Case of Emergency’. By registering a phone number to your closest relation under the contact name ICE in your phone address book, an un known person can contact your relatives in case of an emergency, without knowing their names. 190

Specific Absorption Rate value, i. e. heat energy absorbed per kg body tissue absorbed by head and body. The SAR value is considered the best indicator of the user’s exposure.


Federal Office for Radiation Protection (BfS) website191. However, the BfS recommends

using mobile phones whose SAR value is as low as possible. As advice to consumers,

mobile phones put on the market may carry the eco-label “Blue Angel”, which

established the criteria for mobile phones in June 2002. The label ensures that

emissions from the mobile phone do not exceed a SAR value of 0.6 W/kg, and that it

complies with a series of other criteria191. However, due to the power adaption of

mobile phones, having a good connection to the base station produces a much more

effective exposure reduction than a phone with a low SAR value.

French mobile phone operator Orange can be mentioned as an example of voluntary

environmental labelling of mobile phones192. The label (shown in Figure 4-4) is used for

mobile- and cordless phones in France, Spain and Romania. The label includes several

environmental parameters, of which the SAR value190 is 1.

Figure 4-4: Mobile phone operator Orange’s environmental -label (DAS is French equivalent of SAR)193

Similarly, mandatory measuring and reporting systems for RF emissions from products

put into the market is an interesting policy option. For example since 2003, Finnish

authorities measure the SAR of the cell phones put on the market194. In radiation tests,

STUK195 measures SAR with a testing system which is in compliance with international

191

The German Federal Office for Radiation, Webpage: www.bfs.de/en/elektro/faq/faq_mobilfunk.html/#3. [Accessed online 08/03/2010]) 192

Orange in france webpage (in French or Spanish) www.orange-en-france.orange.fr/Developpement_durable/etiquetage_ecologique.html?p=4.3.5 [Accessed online 18/06/2010] 193 This label was conceived by BIO Intelligence Service for Orange and World Wildlife Fund. 194

Webpage of Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority, on mobile phone testing: www.stuk.fi/sateilytietoa/sateilevat_laitteet/laitteiden_valvonta/en_GB/matkapuhelimet/ [Accessed online 08/03/2010] 195

The Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority, www.stuk.fi [Accessed online 08/03/2010]


August 2010

standard196. It is assumed that the measured SAR value is at least as high as the

maximum exposure in an actual situation, and thus, for the duration of the test, the

mobile phone operates at its maximum power. The technology used in the phone,

different user settings, and the anatomic features of the user’s head, both children’s

and adults’ are taken into account when testing. The measured phones are chosen

randomly, primarily from the top-selling models. The tests, performed according to

International (IEC 62209-1) standard and with specially designed equipment, are

technically demanding and time-consuming. Therefore, only about 15 models are

measured annually194. The tests results are available on the authority’s (STUK195) web

page194 along with information on use and risks. Labelling, measurements, and

reporting are all policy options which may be elaborated in cooperation with industry,

which may lower the need for resources to be allocated from the public authorities.

Furthermore, these options may promote a technical development towards lowering

emissions from mobile devices. Because of the wide spread use of mobile and wireless

equipment, even small improvements may be of great benefit to the overall IF

exposure.

When it comes to indirect exposure to mobile devices, one policy option is to restrict

the amount of use of mobile phones in situations where people are forced to stay close

to each other over longer periods of time. This could include, for example, work

situations or travelling. A more extreme measure to limit overall exposure would be to

create EMF free zones. In Sweden, when travelling with Swedish Railways, one can

choose to sit in a carriage where mobile phones must be switched off to reduce noise.

Although the primary aim of this policy is not to reduce electromagnetic fields, this

concept could be extended to EMF. If offered as a voluntary option to travellers, this

measure may not have to be very expensive, and may even be used as a competitive

advantage by transport companies. Depending of the travellers’ awareness of EMF

issues, however, the effect may vary.

4.3.3.2 Limiting exposure from antennas and base stations

In some of the Member States, there may not be existing administrative structures for

impact assessments, public consultation or information prior to the installation of

antennas and base stations for RF equipment. In these countries, therefore, relatively

large antennas can be installed in residential areas without the need for a full planning

application186. This means that although it may be generally accepted by the industry

that exposure of people close to base stations or antennas are well within the limits

suggested in guidelines, there is no independent body to inform public and ensure that

exposure limits station/antenna are not exceeded. The installations may therefore still

cause worries among the public186. One policy option is to make sure that location of

antennas and base stations of a certain size/power shall be treated through existing

procedures for planning and permission. This would mean that authorities should have

196

International standard used: IEC 62209-1


the possibility to demand measurements or calculations for exposure assessment prior

to authorising the construction of new antennas and base stations.

Added to this, the setting up of a mandatory periodical monitoring to map areas where

there is a high density of base stations could be an interesting option. This would help

to identify areas where exposure is potentially high, which could in turn affect

permissions for further antennas to be installed, or indicate that precautionary

technical actions need to be taken. For example, national databases could be set up by

public authorities giving details of all base stations and the emission rates from

these186.

If no administrative authority exists which has the power to give construction permits

and perform the monitoring of antennas and base stations, the cost for implementing

the necessary legislation or policies may be high. Cooperation with the industry in the

development of such systems is important to improve the result, gain acceptance and

to reduce the cost. Future evaluation and research would be greatly facilitated by

permission- and monitoring schemes, which in the long term will be of benefit in risk

assessments regarding EMF.

4.3.3.3 Limiting exposure at home

Location and use of electrical devices and installations in homes, such as cordless

phones, wireless network computers, anti theft devices and microwave ovens may

affect exposure levels. Exposure from these sources may be difficult to address

through policy measures other than information on products and use of products (such

as for mobile devices, see 4.3.3.1). Setting up appropriate information programmes on

how to choose the location of RF emitting equipment in the room or apartment to

reduce RF exposure at home could also be a useful tool to encourage the population to

take precautionary action. Such advice could include when to turn off devices, and the

optimal location of beds in relation to certain electrical devices (for the policy option of

information on precaution in homes, see section 4.3.1.2).

Another policy measure could be the setting up of educational and information

programmes targeting salesmen at electronic shops, also advising on EMF when selling

cordless mobile phones or wireless computer installations.

4.3.4. POLICY APPROACHES TO REDUCE EXPOSURE TO SF

Static fields are produced in some industrial processes, for example in the aluminium

and chlor-alkali industries, welding processes and in certain railway and underground

transport systems. Policy measures taken could include the measures described for

occupational exposure in the section on IF EMF (see section 4.3.2. ). Other possible

policy measures include programmes of education and information for staff exposed to

elevated levels of exposure (for the policy option of occupational education, see

section 4.3.2. ).


August 2010

4.4. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

There is no conclusive scientific evidence of any adverse health effects below the

protection limits of exposure to electromagnetic fields proposed by the International

Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection (ICNIRP), implemented in Europe by

the Council Recommendation 1999/519/EC. The advantage of applying the ICNIRP

guidelines is their solid scientific basis of established biological effects.

Nevertheless, there is remaining scientific uncertainty in many fields, reflected by the

call for further research by the Commission’s Scientific Committee on Emerging and

Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR) over the whole frequency spectrum. In the ELF

range, there is a suggestion of a possible increased risk of childhood leukaemia

associated with long-term exposures to magnetic fields as low as 0.2-0.4 µT, which – if

causal – would explain approximately 1% of all childhood leukaemia cases in the

European Union. Further, a modestly increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease may be

confirmed by future studies, although it is premature to draw any conclusions as

available data today are highly controversial. Little research has been done in the IF

range with more and more technologies emerging. In the RF range, mobile phone use

is a very common source of exposure and even when scientific studies conducted to

date do not show increased risks of any disease, data on longer term use of the devices

beyond 10-15 years is sparse. Based on this, avoidance of unnecessary exposures,

implementation of measures lowering emissions to levels that are currently technically

feasible and not related to high expenses, and guidance of the public on how to avoid

exposures, if they wish, appear to be the most appropriate options. Nevertheless, as

public perception is different for collective (e.g. base stations) and individual (e.g.

mobile phones) equipment, the management of concern due to these devices should

be different. In parallel, research activities must continue to further reduce uncertainty

in this field. Obviously, science-policy interface and public information about research

results must be associated to research.

A precautionary lowering of protection limits is a rigorous step to enforce lower

exposure, a policy option considered by some regional authorities within the EU.

However, there is a lack of data on the impact of stricter exposure levels on the total

distribution of exposure levels in the population. In the ELF range, average 24 hours

exposure to magnetic fields of the general public rarely exceed 1 µT, thus, protection

limits of 1 µT compared to the existing 100 µT would hardly make any difference and

appear to rather address public concern than leading to a measurable reduction of

exposure. Stricter levels of exposure have to be accompanied by monitoring in order to

ensure that these levels are kept, as the technologies remain the same, but introduce

additional costs for surveillance. It is a recommendation to perform measurement

surveys of exposure in regions of lower protection limits to compare them with

exposure distributions in regions of the adopted EC Directive, to quantify the impact of

the measure.


There are some technical options to further reduce exposure, ranging from very costly

to moderate expenses. An expensive option is removing existing power lines or

transmitter stations and it is doubtful this can be achieved on a national level. Only

applying the option of minimum distances between such installations and residential

areas requires cost-benefit analyses, however, it appears that this is mainly an option

for less densely populated areas in high-income countries; it would also introduce

social inequality if measures are taken in respect of new installations while existing

ones remain unchanged. Some new technologies appear to be related to lower

exposures, even when exposure reduction was not the primary aim: examples are the

new generation of mobile phones (UMTS versus GSM) or replacing the analogue radio

and TV broadcasting systems with the new digital one. Technically unnecessary

exposures are related to devices emitting fields when they are not in use, i.e., electric

devices in standby modus or DECT cordless phone base stations.

Avoidance of unnecessary exposure is mainly an issue for users of EMF devices. Electric

installations in homes should use modern systems, as elevated fields from indoor

wiring are often found in older homes. Electric devices should only be switched on

when they are used. Landline phones instead of cordless phones or mobile phones

should be preferred in families with small children and, further, teenagers should be

discouraged to extensively use mobile phones. Such recommendations could be

supplemented with policies to prohibit offering of flat rates for children and teenagers.

Mobile phones could be sold always with wired hands-free devices, to automatically

provide customers the opportunity to reduce exposure when using them. How to use

of mobile phones under low power conditions could be a mandatory part of the mobile

phone manual and the current output power could be indicated on the screen of the

phone.

In conclusion, society and/or decision-makers have to decide which options of

exposure reductions are to be applied, given the present scientific uncertainty in

relation to some exposure scenarios. However, it is unclear at the moment whether

precautionary measures lead to any benefits. For this purpose, the options, their

potential benefits, and potential lack of any benefits together with the implementation

costs have to be communicated in a transparent manner. At the same time, more data

are needed to have a better overview of an individual’s total EMF exposure in a

modern environment, to better identify where exposure peaks occur, and how they

can be avoided.

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